Roxana Mînzatu, proposed by Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu as Romania’s candidate for European Commissioner, stated that she would bring over 20 years of experience in European affairs to serve Romanian and European citizens.

Honored by the trust placed in her, she emphasized her commitment to representing Romania in the European Commission, focusing on cohesion policy and EU funds.

“I am honored by the confidence with which Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu has entrusted me with the nomination as European Commissioner on behalf of Romania. It is a privilege and a responsibility to be able to represent my country in such an important decision-making structure of the European Union, the Commission being the driving force of European integration”, said Mînzatu.

“Cohesion policy and the management of European funds have given me an overview of how European policies are present in every industry, in every public service, in every community and in the life of every citizen. I have worked for Romania’s European journey for two decades, both in the private sector and in local and national public administration. I am prepared, both politically and technically, to represent Romania professionally, to contribute to a very good mandate for all Europeans and for all Romanians in the future Commission”, she added.

Mînzatu also noted that the process is just beginning, with upcoming candidate announcements and hearings in the European Parliament. Mînzatu has a solid background in managing European funds and public administration.

“This will be followed by the official announcement of the nominated candidates and their portfolios by President Ursula von der Leyen, followed by hearings in the European Parliament’s committees, which I will approach seriously and professionally”, concluded Mînzatu.

Who is Roxana Mînzatu?

Roxana Mînzatu is a Romanian MEP elected in the June 2024 elections on the Social Democratic Party list.

From January 2022 until July 2024, she was Secretary of State Coordinator of the Department for the Evaluation and Integrated Monitoring of Programs Financed from Public and European Funds.

She was a PSD MP from 2016 to 2020 and in 2019 she was Minister of European Funds.

In 2015 she was Secretary of State in the Ministry of European Funds, responsible for the reform of the public procurement system and from September 2015 she headed the National Agency for Public Procurement until January 2016.

In 2009 she was sub-prefect of Brasov County and between 2004 – 2008 and 2011 – 20212 she was PSD county councillor in Brasov County Council.

Roxana Mînzatu has 20 years of public and private professional experience in the field of management and implementation of European funds in Romania, a career that started as a Euroadviser (integration advisor) in the Ministry of European Integration in March 2004.

Priority areas supported include entrepreneurship and support to start-ups and SMEs, including involvement in the design of funding schemes such as Start Up Nation, promotion of women in both public life and entrepreneurship, integrated approach to public funding in the water and sanitation sector, water industry as a country project.

She has been a member of the Social Democratic Party since 2000.

Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu pays an important visit to Brussels on Thursday, where he will discuss with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen the state of implementation of the PNRR, the deficit target in the context of Romania’s excessive deficit procedure, Romania’s future European Commissioner and the portfolio allocated to our country. Accompanied by a delegation of ministers, Prime Minister Ciolacu is also joined by MEP Victor Negrescu, Vice-President of the European Parliament, honorary advisor to the Prime Minister for foreign policy and the person who, according to media reports, is to be nominated as Romania’s European Commissioner.

Prior to these important talks, Victor Negrescu gave an interview to CaleaEuropeană.ro in which he explained the state of the talks, the portfolio the Government is considering, the institutional coordination in Romania on this issue and what will follow the Ciolacu – von der Leyen meeting.

“Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu has managed to build a very good relationship with the European Commission and in particular with President von der Leyen. It is no coincidence that Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu is in Brussels to meet the President of the European Commission shortly after announcing his candidacy for the office of President of Romania. This is proof of Romania’s pro-European approach and attests to our role as a credible, serious European partner ready to take on more at EU level. The relationship built with the European Commission and President von der Leyen has translated into the amendment of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, which has led to increased pensions for Romanians, more consistent support for Schengen accession which has led to air and sea entry, and some flexibility on the deficit target for last year”, Negrescu said.

Asked about his desire to be appointed as the next Romanian EU Commissioner and the portfolio Romania should get, Victor Negrescu pointed out the necessity to nominate “a Commissioner with a European profile, a person with strong support in the European Parliament, because too few of those nominated have experience in European politics, but also someone who has the ability to work in a team and to generate majorities”.

“I have personally dedicated my professional career to raising Romania’s profile at European level and I hope that I have succeeded in convincing through my work. I am honored that my career at European level is appreciated and I believe that the significant number of votes I obtained for the position of Vice-President of the European Parliament, the constancy with which I have promoted Romania’s greater role in the EU over the last 17 years, the influence I have had in amending European regulations on recovery and resilience plans or in managing the European Union budget, through my capacity as chief negotiator for the European Parliament, are arguments which were probably taken into account in the analysis which the Romanian Government made”, he emphasized, while Romania is keen to obtain a portfolio with economic ties like other countries such as Austria, France, Ireland, Netherland, Poland or Slovenia.

Speaking about EU developing a new economic model that ties the economic security strategy with the EU foreign policy and the single market, Victor Negrescu explained that we supports President von der Leyen’s proposal to have a mandate focused on investment, security and economic development, both in terms of the EU’s internal policy and external action.

“The European Single Market has been the engine of economic development and has been at the basis of the development of the European project, but it has not been completed so far. We need to increase the level of economic integration to provide new opportunities, especially for SMEs and local and family businesses, we need to have principles of competition and competition that are respected by everyone and do not create illegitimate advantages in the market, we need to attract additional investment globally“, he concluded.

MEP Victor Negrescu (38) is currently vice-president of the PSD Romania and of the Party of European Socialists. Re-elected member of EP for a third time, Negrescu has been elected Vice-President of the European legislature. In the last part of the previous legislature, Negrescu was Quaestor of the European Parliament, the highest position held by a Romanian in the hierarchy of the previous mandate.

Victor Negrescu is also the European Parliament’s chief negotiator for the 2025 EU budget.

eMAG aims to offer customers in Southeast Europe access to a wide range of value-added products and services, targeting a population of over 35 million people and with investments of over 180 million euros, including in logistics and entrepreneurship, said Stejara Pircan, Senior VP eMAG Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary, in an interview with CaleaEuropeană.ro.

To support local entrepreneurs and boost cross-border sales, eMAG has invested in technology, logistics and financial services, and a key aspect has been the synchronization of the platforms in Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary, facilitating international sales without additional efforts from sellers, said Stejara Pircan, pointing out that there are 56.000 entrepreneurs doing business in the three countries through eMAG, while the number of merchants exporting through eMAG Marketplace from Romania to Hungary and Bulgaria or from the two countries to Romania has doubled in the last year.

In the interview, Stejara Pircan emphasized the advantages for eMAG Marketplace sellers in the context of regional expansion, the challenges on the South-East European markets and the development of the logistics infrastructure.

CaleaEuropeană.ro: What strategies does eMAG have to maintain and enhance cross-border sales growth in the future, given the growing market in Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary, and how do you see the impact of the expansion of eMAG Marketplace in Eastern and Southern Europe on the current ecosystem of sellers and consumers?

Stejara Pircan: Our long-term vision is to be able to offer customers across the SEE region tools to help them live a good life through value-added services and access to a very diverse range of products. We serve a population of over 35 million people and through our sustained investments in technology, logistics, entrepreneurship or financial services, we have created a strong community of entrepreneurs who we want to thrive alongside us. That’s 56.000 entrepreneurs doing business in Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary, growing year on year. The number of traders exporting through eMAG Marketplace from Romania to Hungary and Bulgaria or from Hungary and Bulgaria to Romania has doubled in the last year to more than 12.000.

We have invested in warehouses in Romania and Hungary which we have equipped with state-of-the-art technology and we have developed, together with Sameday, the network of delivery points in proximity in all three countries where we operate. In parallel, we have extended the Genius service with free delivery and exclusive offers in over 300 locations in Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary, opening the program also to retailers who have access to our base of hundreds of thousands of loyal customers.

One of the most important strategic decisions we have invested in, which has helped to increase the number of companies choosing to sell cross-border, was the synchronization of the three platforms in Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary. The impact of this investment was that sellers no longer had to list their products individually on the three platforms, but benefited from an automated process that saved them additional effort.

In parallel, we developed an automated solution for translating product descriptions, which meant that sellers no longer needed to hire Bulgarian or Hungarian speakers to handle this process. At the same time, the extension of the Fulfilment service, where we take over the entire logistics operations, as well as the customer relations area, has greatly simplified the international expansion process. In order to achieve these results, in the last three years alone we have invested more than RON 3.2 billion, and in the fiscal year that started on April 1, 2024, we plan to invest RON 900 million.

The expansion of eMAG’s offer, which now exceeds 22 million offers in Romania alone, more than double the previous year, is also due to sellers who are always looking for new products to satisfy their customers’ needs. More than 60% of the products ordered by eMAG customers are from the sellers’ offer, and the diversification of the product range has also changed buying habits: people now prefer to order several products in one order, covering the needs of the whole family.

CaleaEuropeană.ro: What are the main advantages for sellers who join eMAG Marketplace in the context of the regional expansion in Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary?

Stejara Pircan: Accessing additional sales channels is opportune for any retail business, as each additional channel increases the likelihood of having a stable additional revenue. Our partners benefit from the technology infrastructure that we have built with significant investment and have access to our customer base at no listing cost. They also benefit from the positive image transfer: more than 85% of the region’s population of more than 35 million people know what eMAG is and one in three product searches start on eMAG.  We register 120 million visits/month on the eMAG website and 6.7 million people have the eMAG app installed on their mobile phone. We have over 7 million active customers, of which 4.5 million in Romania, 1.9 million in Hungary and 900,000 in Bulgaria.

Entrepreneurs who have made the decision to move into other markets through eMAG Marketplace have seen the benefits in terms of sales: those who have expanded into Bulgaria and Hungary had 37% additional sales last year. And cross-border expansion is just one of five programs we make available to companies that join our community. Another is Genius, and sellers who have listed products in this program have seen a doubling of their conversion rate. We have more than 700.000 loyal customers who have a Genius subscription, and our recent expansion in the region is expected to generate even more sales. In Hungary, one month after we launched the service, we had already reached 50.000 users, and in Bulgaria, two months after launch, we had 100.000 users.

At the same time, sellers have the advantage that they can use this additional sales channel effortlessly if they choose the Fulfilment service. Another useful tool is eMAG Ads, a pay-per-click service that can give them more than 40% more visibility on the product pages of the products they order. All these programs are complemented by eMAG Campaigns, i.e. all the campaigns we develop month after month, which can generate three to four times more sales for entrepreneurs who consistently list products.

CaleaEuropeană.ro: What are the main differences and challenges specific to Eastern and Southern European markets compared to Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary?

Stejara Pircan: In the region in which we operate, online commerce is developing and we believe that eMAG has an important role to play in accelerating this field, both in terms of investments in value-added services and from the perspective of the business community gathered in the Marketplace. Our objective is to become a regional ecommerce hub and our strategy is to develop technology and services in Romania and scale them internationally once we see that they work and generate the results we are aiming for. The three markets we are present in have many common characteristics. In all three countries, online commerce has a penetration rate of somewhere between 8-10%, and if we look at more mature markets, there is still a lot of room for growth. Among the challenges we see is therefore the need to increase the level of digitalization, but also the development of road infrastructure would help, especially in Romania.

Looking at the behavior of our customers, we notice that in Bulgaria and Hungary the appetite for cash payment is higher than in Romania, where card payment is increasing year on year. At the moment, in Romania 35% of orders are still paid cash on delivery, while in Hungary the percentage rises to 55% and in Bulgaria to 70%.  What we are doing to contribute to the growth in card payments is to give people the flexibility to pay for products when it is the best time for them, which is why we have introduced payment methods that allow them to pay directly from their MyWallet account in four installments or 30 days or 12 installments with Hey Blu. We also offer other financing solutions through our partners in the banking industry.

CaleaEuropeană.ro: What measures have you taken to ensure a smooth integration of sellers from new markets into the eMAG Marketplace ecosystem?

Stejara Pircan: An important step for sellers in the region is the cross-border listing, which from our perspective is today as easy as it can be, as eMAG manages all the effort involved in listing in three countries. From listing or translating offers into languages other than the seller’s home language, to synchronizing offers and prices on the platform, all this effort is taken care of by us precisely to facilitate this experience for the sellers and support them to focus on their business.

CaleaEuropeană.ro: How does eMAG support retailers in understanding and adapting to local regulations and consumer preferences in Eastern and Southern European countries?

Stejara Pircan: All our processes and tools are compliant with European Union legislation, and technology helps us to comply. For example, in the case of discounted products, the discount has to be related to the lowest price in the last 30 days, and with the help of technology we can validate compliance before the start of a discount campaign. In addition, we have regular and very close communication with the sellers on the platform through newsletters that include articles on the legislation of each country in which we operate and the legislative news relevant to them, as well as advice on how to manage their cross-border business and how to comply with the legislation.

CaleaEuropeană.ro: What role do local partnerships play in eMAG Marketplace’s expansion strategy in these new regions and how do they help to improve the services offered?

Stejara Pircan: We have strong communities of local sellers in each of the countries where we operate, and this is extremely important because they come with a very good understanding of the local specifics, with products tailored to the consumer in that country and with the speed of delivery that customers expect.

Otherwise we make the best use of synergies at Group level, and a relevant example of this is the collaboration with Sameday, which this year is accelerating proximity delivery by expanding its delivery points and network of lockers. This also helps us because easybox delivery has seen very good customer adoption, and through it we have extended the reach for the Genius service with free delivery and exclusive offers. Genius is also an important program for sellers, as it gives them access to a loyal customer base that buys more online. The products that sellers sell through Genius thus achieve higher sales.

CaleaEuropeană.ro: What are eMAG’s expectations in terms of sales growth and customer base expansion as it expands into Eastern and Southern Europe?

Stejara Pircan: Our objective is to strengthen our presence in the region and to bring to these markets other services that we have tested in Romania and have proven their usefulness for our customers. We also aim to increase the range of products to cover every need and offer customers good prices, and if ten years ago, when we made the leap into international markets, we had 10.000 products on offer, now we have over 22 million, but there is room for growth if we look at more mature markets such as Poland, where over 200 million items can be ordered online. We are banking on the involvement of Marketplace entrepreneurs, and the volume of products they have sold through the platform has accounted for over 60% of the total, and the percentage is growing.

CaleaEuropeană.ro: What plans do you have for developing logistics infrastructure and delivery services in the new markets to ensure an optimal experience for both retailers and consumers?

Stejara Pircan: This fiscal year we plan to invest over 180 million euros, including in logistics and entrepreneurship.

We have already made significant investments in warehousing and robotization to be able to offer a better experience to our customers: we have been able to consolidate orders, i.e. group several products in the same parcel, and our productivity has increased four times. At the same time, we see that easybox delivery is preferred by the majority of customers in Romania and Hungary, where around 66% of orders are delivered by this method. In Bulgaria, delivery to nearby delivery points stands at 35%, rising steadily as the network expands. The network will reach 8.500 delivery points in Romania, Hungary and Bulgaria this year, up from 5.000 at the beginning of the year.