We interview Aleksandra Świtalska – the president of Gekoro in Ożarów Mazowiecki, a leading company in the furniture market. The young leader has just been nominated for the title of Charismatic Woman. She effectively manages an international team, consisting mainly of men. Working at Gekoro, she feels happy of the atmosphere and proud of highly dynamic development of the company with many ambitious plans ahead…
You head a family company. Name the pros and cons of such a business.
Frankly, I see mostly pluses. The family nature of the work makes us spend a lot of time together. We all have common goals and look in the same direction. My parents, the founders of the company, my sister and my husband, we all work at Gekoro and get along really great, both professionally and as a family. Of course, sometimes the heat is on between us, but luckily it lasts rather briefly and after each storm the sun always comes out. Most importantly, we perform our tasks with 110% of commitment.
Are your children involved in the company as well?
Of course. I often work from dawn to dusk due to the huge amount of responsibilities, thus we sometimes bring our children to the office after class. They play and at my leisure I can come up and simply cuddle them. The kids then decorate our office with all sorts of colourful artwork. Naturally, there’s a pile of toys under the desk and it’s sort of a surprise to our clients when they come in with their little ones and I pull out a box of surprises.
How would you describe yourself as a child? Already a charismatic one?
I used to be an over-mature child. I always saw and heard much more than I should have. My strong curiosity frequently led me towards reading a red PWN encyclopaedia or learning the invocation at the age of 7. Pure madness but I loved it. I always had lots of friends. I loved helping others and dreamed of becoming a doctor, but my life took its course and, although never planned, I’m now in the furniture industry. My experience, when holding executive positions, helped me spread wings in my father’s company and create Gekoro – a furniture company. Today, I still help people but in a completely different way.
What were your professional beginnings?
I took my first job at the age of 16, as I already wanted to be financially independent. Later on, I was in charge of organising audiences for TV programmes such as Kocham cię, Polsko!, Szymon Majewski Show, Jaka to melodia’and many others. Each job I took on, quickly made me a coordinator or manager. However, I never was the one to organise work just for myself. Once I got the opportunity, I organised tasks for anyone who needed it. Generally speaking, I was and still am a good organiser and, all in all, I think that’s what I enjoy the most.
When did you decide to move to the company your father founded over 30 years ago?
It was in 2015, when my dad’s business partner suddenly died. As he was left alone just overnight, I couldn’t do other than drop everything and help him embrace things, although holding an executive position in another company at the time. My mother also joined in and together we took care of the administrative and organisational tasks. We then started to create a family business. The three of us worked on putting it back together. In fact, it was putting everything together with a cruel mess to be dealt up in the first place. We then started to implement simple processes making life easier, hired new people in the company, changed the location to a bigger one. My younger sister Kasia started working with us. Our growth began and we tripled our profits already in the first two years. Undoubtedly, the strength of the family was of great importance here.
When did you start heading the company?
I must admit I needed time to develop my competences. Coming to the company I knew absolutely nothing about carpentry besides the fact my dad was a carpenter. I had to learn everything from zero point, i.e. what a cabinet was, what it consisted of, what it looked like in 3D, what it could be made of, what the technical drawing looked like. It wasn’t easy at all. I went through all self-invented positions and started broadening my responsibilities by modernising our work. My father, for example, used to prepare valuation on paper and constantly calculated things on a piece of paper, so, on the second revision of the same project, I thought it didn’t make any sense and created the first calculator. I’m the originator of many processes which have significantly influenced the development of Gekoro. In the meantime, we had a number of key clients, e.g. the Zlota 44 apartment building in Warsaw, so I could do nothing else but develop and improve my competence, especially since dealing with business people. I was ambitious about each and every project. When there was something I didn’t know, I wasn’t afraid to admit it and said I would quickly find out and come back with the answer. At some point, I started presiding the company in order to take conscious responsibility for it.
How many people do you currently employ?
Around 40. The majority of employees work in production, although today, many processes in the plant are already automated. We have several independent departments, managers, technologists, project managers and administration. The male employees prevail due to the nature of our industry, however I see more and more women find their place in the furniture business. Contrary to appearances, this is a very interesting direction. Do you know a woman who wouldn’t enjoy interior design?
How do you, a young woman, manage a male team?
I must admit again that I had to learn it. Today, I think I’m quite flexible, consistent, having an individual approach to employees. Managing an international team must be done skilfully.
Please name your company achievements you’re most proud of.
I’m proud of the fact that the company has grown so much. I see us as a good team. We’ve won lots of interesting contracts, carry out orders from both Polish and foreign business clients from various industries, including hotels, restaurants, retail, office space, and serve developers or individual premium clients. We design and manufacture bespoke and free-standing furniture for any floor space, provide comprehensive interior design services, from private homes to commercial spaces. Our staff are experienced professionals – craftsmen, technologists and architects. We aim to make Gekoro synonymous with quality, innovation and reliability. We cooperated with The Bridge Hotel in Wrocław, the Nobu Hotel and the Bristol Hotel in Warsaw, to name a few.
Why do customers choose your products?
We believe nothing is impossible. We like challenges and have all the skills and tools to do so. Customers appreciate our ingenuity, commitment, quality, ability to merge craftsmanship with design and modern technology. Gekoro’s a flexible company with wide assortment – we love mixing different materials, e.g. wood, steel, upholstery, glass, etc. We make almost any kind of furniture and give long-term guarantees.
Could you share your future plans?
Oh my head’s full of ideas, because there still are many interesting things to be done. First of all, we want to reach beyond our country. Currently I’ve been working on the matter of foreign markets to enter them the soonest I can. Privately, I would like to devote more time to my children and family.
How do you relax?
I love travelling. It allows me to breathe and see things from a different perspective. My family and I are going to Cyprus soon, where we just want to be with each other and recharge our energy for the new year.
Thank you for such an interesting interview. It’s time to wish you a good holiday and completion of all ambitious plans in the new year!
Thank you.
Dorota Kolano
Beata Sekuła
