Joergen H. Hansen, general manager of Skandynawska Spółka Motoryzacyjna (SKAN-CAR), talks to Marcin Mierzejewski.

Your company is the largest Volvo car dealer in Poland. Does SKAN-CAR's profile differ from other Warsaw car dealers?
I would say that among other companies selling and servicing cars, we are the most foreigner-friendly one. We speak many languages, not only English-and Polish of course-but also French, German, and Italian. SKAN-CAR specializes in services for diplomats and tourists. We work at night if necessary, because some customers wish to leave the car in the afternoon and pick it up in the morning. It seems to be very helpful for those who are traveling.

We also provide special services for those of our clients who often travel by air. The owner of the car that is to be serviced can park it at the airport, leaving the keys and information at the Avis airport office. They contact SKAN-CAR and after the journey, our client finds his car in the same place, but checked out and, if necessary, repaired. Many clients appreciate this service.

Another important thing is that a growing number of customers expect us to trade in used cars before they buy a new one. It has been changing for two or three years. Earlier, customers just bought new cars, selling the old ones to their friends or family. It's becoming a more important part of our business.

How has SKAN-CAR's position on the market changed since it was established?
In 1996, when we started the company, everybody in Poland was complaining about the quality of servicing cars: you often couldn't get any information about when the car would be ready, and cars came back to customers dirty and not always repaired correctly. We wanted to be different. Our ambition was to make a perfect car company with the best service. It was a bit easier to do, as our background was with Avis rent-a-car, which was a high-level service company. In 1998, we achieved the position of the biggest Volvo dealer in Poland.
The business environment in Warsaw and in Poland has improved a lot since we started. Many services, which were new in 1996, are today basically standard. The quality level of Polish car servicing companies is much better and competition is growing. Yet our ambition is to be a leader in our branch.

Volvo has a very strong position on the market. You can even talk about Volvo's leading position, when you compare its sales to the same class models of Mercedes, Audi and BMW. In 2002, SKAN-CAR sold 240 new Volvo cars, which makes 12 percent of the total Volvo market share in Poland. Poland is one of the best European markets for Volvos. I think that outside Sweden, only in Poland and the United States does Volvo have such a good image and strong position.

What changes in your business do you expect after Poland's accession to the European Union?
I hope it will make many things easier, if only for procedures of car and spare parts import or tax rulings. The bureaucracy connected with customs seems to be one of the biggest problems in running a business in Poland. I also hope that the way that Polish tax offices work will be improved after accession. Now, it happens that tax offices do not interpret rules in the same way and they can harass companies even without any real justification. Asking businessmen for millions of documents can also be very troubling.

I'm sure that foreign investors are not coming to Poland to cheat by avoiding tax payments, but to run a business and make a profit. And I must say that these kinds of bureaucratic problems are not very encouraging. Of course, the EU also has its own bureaucracy, but at least it is transparent.

I can see a collection of model cars in your office. Are cars also your personal hobby?
Absolutely. I think it's great luck to have a job that is also your hobby. And I am very fortunate to deal professionally with something I really like.