There is an interesting story behind Dora’s success as a reliable supplier and professional business partner. Dora representative Mehmet Fatih Sakallı explained the details of the success stories.
Could you mention about the history of DORA?
Before 2007, my partners and I were working in different companies. With the encouragement of our friends, we bought a secondhand CNC lathe and started to produce some small parts. At the beginning, it was very difficult for us to manage it. Accounting, taxes, social insurance, purchasing etc. were all unfamiliar for us. We only knew how to produce it because of that we had to cope with many problems. But at the same time the demand was unexpectedly increasing. In a couple of years, we bought second and third machines. We moved to a bigger place. To be honest, we did not expect that much to the favor of us but we were always honored by positive developments. After that we decided to be selective on both products and customers. Because it was very uncontrolled growing and everything could be upside down suddenly. Then
we specialized on some product groups. Sustainability of both the products and the customers became our priority as a management principle. Afterwards our field of activities still diversified but in independent and more professional ways. At present, as DORA CNC, DORA Industry, DORA SP Automotive, DORA Construction and TURKON we have been serving in different fields.
What are the policies you have determined to increase customer satisfaction?
At the beginning we were not producing only automotive parts. We produced various mechanical parts or semi-products to the companies serving in renewable energy, agriculture and machinery sectors as well. Most of our customers were local companies that we know each other before. Since they are also experienced on production, their recommendations were very helpful for us to improve the product quality. That time, we realized that the experiences of other producers and the end users are very valuable for us to improve ourselves. Because of that we evaluate all the recommendations from our customers, end users and our colleagues.
What products do you have in your brand’s product range?
As DORA SP, we produce water pumps, water pump housings, release levers, oil hand pumps and some more mechanical parts for commercial vehicles. DORA Industry produces hose crimping machines with its own brand. TURKON produces various parts in renewable energy and automotive sector for other manufacturers.
Can you tell us about your supply network and distribution channels?
For last 2 years we have been exporting our products with our own brand. Now we are directly exporting to Arabian countries, European countries and African countries. But our products are being exported to nearly all over the world by other distributers with various brands. We do not have any local dealers yet but in a couple of years we will have to make some dealership agreements.
Do you consider investing in different areas of the automotive industry?
We planned to gather a team to study on the electronical parts of the vehicles including the software and afterwards to invest on it. But the pandemic and the following economic crisis all over the world delayed our program. But it still in our program. We are just waiting for the right time.
What would you like to add and highlight in the interview?
Russian market is very important for us because the quality of the products like water pump or housing is much more important due to the weather conditions. As soon as the Russian suppliers and end users use our products and satisfied about quality, we hope that we will establish long term relations with Russian companies.