KTC BV – Reflecting on 2025: From Putting Out Fires to Building Foundations
As 2025 comes to an end, our General Manager Gasper Marusa shares valuable reflections and insight on the year we leave behind.
One of my closest business partners made a striking observation during a conversation a few days ago: “Gasper, a year ago, you and I were arguing over who owed whom €2,000. Today, we are discussing where to invest half a million Euro within the next couple of months.”
Those words stopped me in my tracks. When you are running a young, small business—waking up every day to put out yet another fire—it is easy to lose perspective. I rarely take the time to reflect, but as the year draws to a close, we should all look back at where we started 2025 and where we stand today.
As most entrepreneurs know, achieving goals in a timely manner rarely goes as planned. We often think we can move faster than reality allows. We entered 2025 with ambitious targets, and looking back, I must admit we fell short on several of them. Does that mean we failed to grow? Not at all. Our business in December 2025 is unrecognizable compared to what it was in January. While we didn’t check every box, the journey has given us the clarity we need to revisit those goals as we plan for a successful 2026.
The progress we made this year, despite the hurdles, is a testament to the incredible people I am fortunate to work with. Aleksandra took independent ownership of our external communication and supported me in a myriad of other critical tasks. Pascali took over the administrative burdens I find most annoying, freeing my time and mind for strategic priorities. Dayrlane has shown remarkable resilience, juggling personal challenges while navigating global trading during one of the most volatile years our industry has ever seen—the ‘Trump yo-yo’ year. Manar has proven his absolute dedication to developing the ethnic market, uncovering potential I hadn’t fully realized was there.
When this much honest effort and energy are poured into an endeavor, clients and partners in the value chain inevitably reciprocate. They have rewarded us with a year we can truly be proud of. I want to take a moment to sincerely thank my colleagues and our partners; it is your hard work, patience, and shared belief in our vision that allowed us to navigate the chaos of 2025 and emerge stronger. I am truly grateful for the trust you have placed in me and this company.
Looking ahead, I have a confession to make: In my 15+ years in agricultural commodities trading, I have always had grand plans, but I have seldom been as excited as I am right now. 2025 validated our strategy. By focusing on specific niches—distressed cargo solutions and the ethnic market, supported by regular specialty commodities trading and our new venture into packaging materials—we have proven our potential. We are building our footprint step-by-step, and the data shows significant room to increase our market share in the coming year.
To achieve our ambitious goals, we must double down on our organizational foundations. My priority as a leader will be to invest time in streamlining and automating our administrative, logistical, and financial processes. We must strengthen these fundamentals to ensure we are growing sustainably rather than simply “scaling chaos.”
In terms of the team, we grew more conservatively than I expected, adding only one new colleague in 2025. However, our growth in the second half of the year has made it clear that we need additional support in logistics to manage our robust sales pipeline. Furthermore, I expect us to integrate an “AI colleague” into our workflow. While the global implementation of AI has been slower than the hype suggested—and our own use of LLMs and marketing tools is still in its infancy—we remain committed to adopting tech that drives efficiency.
2025 was the year of validation. 2026 will be the year of infrastructure.
Thank you all for being part of this journey.
