STAREK TRANSPORT TOASTS TO ITS 30TH ANNIVERSARY TODAY
In 1993, Štefan Starek and his wife Emília founded a family business focused on the transport of goods. Among their first customers were local companies Panasonic Industrial Devices Slovakia, HYDAC Electronic, and ZŤS – LKT Trstená. Initial transport was provided by only three Avia trucks.
The company responded quickly and flexibly to the growing demand for more complex transport services and adapted to the market by expanding its range of services. Under the visionary leadership of Štefan Starek, the company underwent a comprehensive transformation and entered the international market in 2013 as STAREK Transport s.r.o.
Today, it is one of the largest transport companies in the Orava region and ranks sixth among the largest employers in the town of Trstená. The management has been taken over by the children – daughter Eva Starek and son Martin Starek.
Under their leadership, the company provides comprehensive international transport, logistics, and freight forwarding services, contributing to maximum customer satisfaction. We spoke with Eva Starek about the company's history, present, and future.
Over the past 30 years, the company has gone through several challenging periods. Which was the most difficult?
I think the most challenging period was when we realized that we had to steer this "big ship" ourselves.
One of my father's big dreams came true when he bought the former Benzinol refinery and fuel storage facility in Hámričky, Trstená. The reconstruction of the approximately 22,000 square meter site was one of the oldest environmental burdens from industrial production in Slovakia, which my brother and I considered a great challenge and a test of our abilities.
More than 20,000 tons of soil were contaminated. The clean-up of this environmental burden cost €6.43 million, part of which was paid for by the Operational Program Quality of the Environment and another part from the state budget.
The work was carried out while the company was in full operation, but this had no impact on the quality of the services provided. We decided to preserve the front wall of the original buildings as historical evidence of the clash between the past and the present. The memorial wall – the last wall of the former refinery – is a symbol of stability and a challenge for the future of our company.
In honor of our founders, our parents, we have immortalized their portraits, which will always remind us of the laying of the foundation stone of STAREK Transport.
And so, step by step, we reached our 30th anniversary.
How do you manage to stay among the top players?
We respond flexibly to market changes. We are aided by well-designed processes, which we are constantly improving and which form the basis for effective and maximum results.
An effectively built management system (ISO 9001:2015) is a matter of course for us and part of our daily transport management and planning. Just-in-time deliveries require sophisticated logistics for our truck fleet and a thorough understanding of the risks that affect it.
In management, we focus on the early identification of risks and taking measures to eliminate them. We emphasize the expertise, professional approach, and competence of our employees, who are an important part of the company's success.
Without good, high-quality people, it would be difficult to build and maintain a company. That is why we actively support their professional growth through organized and individual training. Everyone who works for us is important.
Everything must fit together and function as a whole. Since we are a family-type company, we treat our employees in the same way. We meet not only at work, but also outside of work—at joint events and activities that include their families.
What is the portfolio of services you provide?
A team of experienced professionals ensures smooth transport and coordination of services quickly and efficiently. Transport between Slovakia and Germany usually takes no longer than 48 hours.
Fast and safe transport is guaranteed by experienced drivers. Flexible freight forwarders provide prompt and high-quality service. Our prices are unbeatable, but never at the expense of quality. All company employees respect the established principles and thus contribute to the fulfillment of our goals and objectives.
We have a state-of-the-art fleet of more than 60 vehicles at our disposal. If we are unable to provide the right vehicle for a particular commodity, we will arrange for it to be transported by contracted and certified carriers. Every company vehicle meets the highest EURO standards. This guarantees high flexibility, safety, and quality of freight transport.
The main philosophy of STAREK Transport is customer satisfaction and quick fulfillment of their requirements. When shipping, we ensure reliable and safe transport of goods to their destination.
We also offer the services of a newly built TRUCK service center, which provides repairs for trucks and is equipped with state-of-the-art equipment. It was approved in 2023.
Another service offered by our company is a collection service, which is a special system for transporting smaller and lighter shipments that cannot completely fill the space in a transport vehicle. This type of goods is also referred to as piece shipments.
The collection service can offer attractive prices with guaranteed short delivery times. This is achieved by concentrating a large number of individual shipments to similar destinations at a single collection point, sending them collectively to the collection point at the destination, and finally delivering them to the recipient.
If you are interested, they can insure your shipment against all possible risks. The biggest advantages of collection services include their attractively low price and the transport of shipments of various weights and sizes, even if they are smaller in quantity.
The company is constantly expanding; can you reveal any news?
We currently have a new warehouse in Ružomberok, where we offer storage and administrative space for rent. We have a total of 11,800 square meters of space available.
Loading ramps for trucks and a gate for direct access to loading and unloading goods are a matter of course. If necessary, the warehouse provides 24/7 gateway – in/out services.
We do not want to lag behind in ecological trends in freight transport. We actively monitor these trends and are open to their introduction into our company. It is only a matter of time before vehicles that use alternative energy appear in our fleet. At present, we see the insufficient distribution network of charging stations as an obstacle.
We believe that we will be able to fulfill and develop all our future plans and goals in accordance with the needs of STAREK Transport and the market.
Do you know what Jánošík, a raftsman, Orava Castle, the Orava Forest Railway, the church in Trstená, X-Man, a bear, a wolf, the High Tatras, wooden houses, the Slovak flag, and a double cross have in common?
They decorate STAREK Transport trucks, promoting Slovakia across Europe. In 2022, together with other vehicles, they traveled almost 5.3 million kilometers.
