Vario Grease, which meets the specific needs of its customers with its expertise in high-quality grease production, proudly celebrates its fifth anniversary. With strong references and collaborations with global companies, Vario Grease has established itself as a trusted company in the industry and continues to advance its corporate development through memberships in NLGI and ELGI.

Since its establishment, Vario Grease has increased both its production capacity and export volume. The company continues to differentiate itself through its laboratory infrastructure equipped with advanced machinery and testing equipment, as well as its ongoing R&D activities. Having emerged stronger from challenging periods through teamwork, Vario Grease continues to move confidently toward its strategic goals.

With plans to participate in three major international trade fairs in 2025, Vario Grease is ready to pursue new business opportunities while strengthening and expanding its connections in both domestic and international markets. We spoke with Vario Grease General Manager Tayfun Yılmaz about the company's achievements over its first five years and its goals for the future.

Could you tell us about the general profile of Vario Grease?

Vario Grease specializes in the production of high-quality greases and develops custom formulations particularly for industrial applications. We provide tailored solutions for each customer, designing greases to meet specific requirements. Our expertise includes greases developed for demanding operating conditions, with resistance to high temperatures, pressure and water. We also develop hygienic and environmentally responsible products suitable for the food industry. At Vario Grease, we not only provide our customers with high-quality products, but also continuously invest in R&D to develop solutions that deliver performance beyond established industry standards.

We also provide flexible solutions in contract manufacturing, enabling us to meet a wide range of special requirements and customer demands. This allows us to deliver the ideal grease solution for each customer within a short timeframe and to high quality standards. Vario Grease is recognized in the industry for its strong references and collaborations with major brands. Our contract manufacturing agreements with these companies demonstrate not only our commitment to consistent quality but also our reliability. We collaborate with global leaders in the industrial and automotive sectors, and these partnerships reflect our technical expertise as well as our capabilities in flexibility and on-time delivery.

Working with major brands continuously strengthens our ability to manufacture according to demanding standards. Each project is carried out with customized solutions designed to fully meet the customer's requirements. We believe our strong position in the industry plays an important role in being preferred by leading brands. Thanks to our contract manufacturing experience, quality control processes and innovative approach, we continue to build long-term and successful partnerships.

Does Vario Grease have institutional references within its field of activity?

Vario Grease is a member of the National Lubricating Grease Institute (NLGI) and the European Lubricating Grease Institute (ELGI). We regard these memberships as important references that strengthen our company's international presence and position within the industry. Our NLGI and ELGI memberships provide valuable platforms for maintaining high quality standards in the lubricants and grease industry and for developing innovative solutions. Both organizations encourage knowledge sharing among industry professionals worldwide and contribute to shaping industry trends. Our engagement with these communities expands our perspective while strengthening our competitiveness in international markets. It also enables us to closely follow global developments and continuously improve our products and services.

Vario Grease is celebrating its fifth anniversary. How do you evaluate the progress and achievements of the company over these five years?

We are proud to be celebrating the fifth anniversary of our company. These five years have been filled with both significant challenges and major opportunities. By overcoming the difficulties we encountered along the way, we have strengthened our position in the industry. During this period, we faced global and local challenges including the pandemic, the earthquake and the economic crisis. However, we managed to approach each challenge as a turning point that tested and ultimately strengthened the resilience and flexibility of our company.

The pandemic coincided with the early years of our company, requiring us to rapidly adapt our way of doing business to changing conditions while establishing a strong operational infrastructure. The earthquake that affected the region where we operate had profound social, psychological and economic consequences for us, just as it did for everyone living and working in the area. Nevertheless, we managed to recover quickly and maintain our customer-focused approach. Rapid action in post-earthquake crisis management and strong internal solidarity helped us navigate this major crisis with minimal disruption.

The economic challenges experienced worldwide following the pandemic were felt particularly strongly in Türkiye. During these difficult conditions, we continued to grow through strategies focused on improving efficiency and managing costs. In every challenging period, our commitment to innovation and quality standards further strengthened our position in the industry. Each challenge also created new opportunities and helped reinforce our vision, mission and values. As we celebrate the achievements of our fifth year, we look to the future with confidence and aim to continue expanding both within our industry and in the domestic market.

What role has teamwork played in this five-year success story? Was there a team member who made a particularly important contribution to overcoming challenges and achieving these results?

When I founded this company, I received tremendous support from my friends. Every one of our employees has played an important role in this journey, and I owe a great deal to all of them. At the same time, my greatest support throughout this process has been our Plant Manager, Efsun Acar. Efsun is not only an experienced manager, but also someone who has embraced our company's culture and values and continues to carry them forward every day.

Efsun Acar's command of every stage of the production process and her expertise in human resources have played an important role in the growth of our company. Her calm and solution-oriented approach has consistently helped us overcome the challenges we have faced.

What is Vario Grease's current production capacity, and do you have plans to increase it further?

Over the past five years, we have taken significant steps in growth and development. In particular, we increased our annual production capacity fourfold, from 1,500 tonnes per year to 6,000 tonnes per year. This increase has enabled us to make our production processes more efficient while serving more customers with high-quality products. Alongside the increase in capacity, we have significantly strengthened our laboratory infrastructure. We invested in advanced equipment and testing systems to support our R&D activities and continuously improve product quality. Innovative work carried out in our laboratories has enabled us to develop more precise and performance-oriented grease solutions tailored to the specific requirements of our customers.

The increase in production capacity and improvements to our laboratory infrastructure have strengthened our competitiveness and enabled us to provide faster, higher-quality service to our customers. We are proud of the progress we have made both in our internal operations and in the services we provide. In the coming years, we aim to further strengthen our technological infrastructure and reinforce our position in the industry.

Could you tell us about your laboratory and R&D activities focused on developing new products and services?

Over the past five years, our R&D activities have played an important role in the growth of our company and in strengthening our position within the industry. We have continuously invested in R&D to develop innovative products and services, respond more effectively to customer needs and strengthen our competitive advantage. This approach has enabled us both to improve our existing products and to design entirely new solutions for different requirements.

Our research into specialized grease formulations has enabled us to address challenges faced particularly by customers in industrial segments. Following the strengthening of our laboratory infrastructure, our R&D team can conduct faster and more precise testing, allowing us to achieve greater accuracy throughout the product development process. These investments improve product quality while also contributing to our sustainability objectives.

Customer feedback also plays an important role in new product development. We customize our products according to customer requirements and expectations in order to provide the most appropriate solutions. At the same time, we closely follow industry trends and technological developments, working to anticipate future market requirements and shape our R&D projects accordingly. We will continue investing in R&D activities and our innovative product portfolio in the years ahead.

Could you tell us about Vario Grease's export strategy?

We have significantly increased our export performance and today export 60% of our production. Reaching this level is the result of a long-term effort and the trust we have built in international markets. Our competitiveness in global markets contributes not only to our company's revenue but also to the national economy. Increasing brand awareness internationally, together with the experience and achievements we have gained abroad, has also strengthened our reputation in the domestic market. Exporting has encouraged us to make significant progress in international production standards, quality management and innovation. In 2025, we plan to participate in three major trade fairs to further strengthen our business connections both in Türkiye and abroad.

Are there advantages and disadvantages to operating in Osmaniye?

Operating outside major industrial regions such as Istanbul and Kocaeli can create certain challenges. As two of Türkiye's principal industrial centers, these cities offer significant advantages in logistics, supply and access to labor. Being located outside Istanbul, Kocaeli and even Izmir can therefore occasionally create challenges in transportation and supply chain management. In addition, because some major companies in our industry are concentrated in Istanbul and Kocaeli, we can be geographically distant from certain industry networks and business partnerships. This can sometimes limit access to the broader opportunities available through local suppliers and collaborative networks.

We have developed various strategies to overcome these disadvantages. For example, we have established strong business partnerships to optimize our logistics and supply chain processes and selected strategic points along different transportation routes to improve efficiency.

At the same time, operating outside Istanbul and Kocaeli also provides advantages. From a cost perspective, we can operate with more favorable rental and labor costs compared with these cities, enabling us to offer high-quality products at more competitive prices. The local workforce in our region is also highly qualified and motivated, which contributes to faster production processes and improved quality. Ultimately, through strategic planning and efficiency-focused measures, we have minimized the disadvantages of operating in Osmaniye and have succeeded in creating a strong competitive advantage in both domestic and international markets.