To begin with, can you briefly introduce the MBE concept on a global level? What are the key services that MBE offers, in which markets is it present and how many branches does it have in its network?
The MBE network includes more than 3,200 branches worldwide in which independent entrepreneurs, through a franchise agreement, provide a full range of logistics services to individuals, small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as large companies. MBE is present on all continents, except for North America. Namely, back in 2001, UPS bought MBE for $191 million and rebranded most of the current US MBE locations into UPS stores. Eight years later, the MBE brand for the rest of the world was bought by the MBE franchisor for Italy and continued to develop the network worldwide with the exception of the USA. MBE offers an extremely wide range of services, making it a “one stop shop” for all logistics needs and can become the outsource logistics department of your company. The most common services are professional packaging, sending and receiving of all types of shipments (from small packages, to very bulky, fragile, expensive and/or heavy to pallets or containers), receiving of shipments (with rental of post offices, rental of business addresses, etc.) to complete fulfillment services from receiving your goods, unloading, receiving, storing, issuing at your request to all warehouse records and conducting inventories)

What does your business look like in Croatia and the region? When did you start working in this area and how has it developed since then?

MBE Adriatic d.o.o. is the holder of master franchise rights for the entire region. We currently have 30 branches in Croatia, but several more are in preparation. The network is continuously developing and growing. We opened our first branch in 2018 in Zagreb, on Radnička Street. We are proud that this branch has become a kind of emblem of the entire network and its photos are often used in MBE promotional materials around the world.

How is your business developing in the region? How do you attract new partners and what do you offer them to step into this form of private business with the support of a franchise?
We are present in all countries in the region through local MBE Area Franchise holders, to whom we have given the right to develop the MBE network in that area. In Slovenia, the MBE Center Ljubljana operates, Bosnia and Herzegovina has Sarajevo and Cazin (with another location signed and launching soon). Serbia has MBE in Belgrade, Montenegro in Podgorica, and North Macedonia in Skopje. Negotiations are still ongoing for Kosovo. Starting next year, we plan to devote more attention to the region and the growth of the MBE network in surrounding countries. We offer entrepreneurs who want to enter the MBE system training that allows even people without previous experience or education to become logistics professionals. We guide them through the system from the start of their business to the point of coverage, and during their later work, our experts, proven in practice, visit them and transfer valuable knowledge and experience. In addition, from the very beginning, they receive extremely competitive conditions from a wide network of suppliers, which they would never have achieved on their own, and a brand that is already recognized on the domestic and global markets. The business model of the MBE network has proven to be successful all over the world and, due to the breadth of services we offer, is extremely resilient to all market challenges, so we did not stop operating even during the corona crisis.

It seems that you are doing well because Mail Boxes Etc. has once again won the award for the fastest growing foreign franchise on the Croatian market within the prestigious Franchise Brand Leader Award. What does this recognition mean to you?

This is our third such award and we are particularly proud of this growth. It is obvious that our model works and that customers are satisfied with our service and that there is a serious need in the market that we have met well. However, all of this would not be possible without our hard-working and dedicated entrepreneurs - franchisers and all our employees - whether in MBE Adriatic or all MBE centers.

Competition in the field of logistics, delivery and business services is really strong. What makes MBE stand out from the rest — what is your “unique selling point”?

Our global slogan is #PeoplePossible and truly our strength lies in the fact that the motivation of an entrepreneur to provide a customer with good service is much stronger than the motivation that a competitor’s employees may have. MBE always goes a step further, couriers often have many limitations in terms of dimensions, weight or value for the shipments they are willing to accept. MBE, unlike an individual courier, does not transport a package from point A to point B, but solves the user’s problem. With us, you do not wait on the 060 line to get an incompetent student in customer service, but the user communicates with a person who is authorized and capable of solving their problem.
MBE is much more than a courier or transporter because it also solves complex tasks that most others cannot “get through the system”. Remember that when you have to send a three-meter parasol, pack a valuable piece of art and send it to an auction and then return or forward it to the customer. When you're tired of struggling with returns, unloading after hours, when you're out of work. When your own employees in the warehouse get stuck or when inventory gets stuck, remember that there is someone who can take over all of this and allow you to focus on the part of your job that you really love and are best at. Call MBE and solve your problem with one call.

What specific services do you offer to users in Croatia and who are they most intended for - individuals, small entrepreneurs or web merchants?
All three segments are equally represented, but individual MBE centers, in accordance with market conditions, are more dedicated to one of these segments. Thus, MBE locations in city centers work more with individuals and the SME segment, while MBE centers with larger warehouses work more with web merchants, but also large entrepreneurs who need fulfillment services. MBE often cooperates with marketing agencies that work for large clients or even multinational companies that we help with marketing activities. For example, sending gifts to customers or conducting prize games are activities that such clients often leave to us. MBE is increasingly handling the logistics of appearances at trade fairs, helping to organize lectures, seminars and various events, where many different items need to be transported, unloaded, unpacked and precisely delivered and placed at the locations. MBE also offers graphic and printing services, so we often have inquiries that require the creation of promotional materials, as well as the delivery and placement of such materials at a specific time at the location of meetings or events.

When we talk about your approach to customers and the quality of service, what would you single out as your greatest advantage?

The greatest advantage of the MBE network is personalized service, whereby we very often create a completely new service in cooperation with the customer. If you need to pick up an advertising totem urgently today, change the advertisement on it, bring it to a hotel on the Adriatic the day after tomorrow, but not only to the first obstacle, but to the fifth floor in the meeting room, unpack it and dispose of all the packaging material - such a service cannot be offered by a courier or a transporter. We often receive requests for complex services that must be done quickly and accurately, and this is where MBE is the right address.

What results did you achieve in 2024, and what are you recording in the first half of 2025? Can you share specific figures or growth indicators?
Overall, the MBE network grew by 38 percent in 2024, and a similar growth in both revenue and physical indicators (number of shipments, packages, etc.) continues this year.

What are your further plans for expanding your business in Croatia and the region? Where do you see MBE in the next few years?

MBE is already a respectable player in the parcel delivery market. We are also growing in pallet deliveries, and more and more MBE centers are expanding their storage capacities and investing in transport vehicles, which further strengthens the position of the MBE fulfillment service. In the coming years, we plan to develop the MBE network more strongly in the region, first in Slovenia and Serbia, where we believe there is significant untapped potential, and then in Bosnia and Herzegovina and other countries. By the end of the first development phase, which lasts until 2028, we expect the MBE network to include more than 50 branches in all major cities in the region, as well as the introduction of new and expansion of existing services such as luggage shipping, logistics adapted to the export of wine and olive oil, and specific solutions in which we use the breadth and availability of the MBE network to receive returns from large online retailers.

Article and images transferred from eCommerce Magazine No.8