Ivica Todorić (; born 2 January 1951) is a
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
n businessman. Until June 2017, he was the owner and chairman of the board of
Agrokor
Agrokor () was a conglomerate, largely centered in agribusiness, with headquarters in Zagreb, Croatia. Founded in 1976 as a flower grower, it became a joint stock company in 1989, with 100 percent ownership held by founder Ivica Todorić. It grea ...
, the largest privately owned company in Croatia. The operations of Agrokor are focused on two core businesses: manufacturing of food and drinks, and retail.
Biography
Todorić was born in 1951. His mother, Ivana, was a teacher from
Kloštar Ivanić. His father, Ante Todorić, was a prominent figure in the agricultural area of the
Socialist Republic of Croatia
The Socialist Republic of Croatia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Hrvatska, Социјалистичка Република Хрватска), or SR Croatia, was a constituent republic and federated state of the Socia ...
and was the chief engineer and director of Božjakovina farm in
Dugo Selo
Dugo Selo is a town in Zagreb County, Croatia.
Geography
Dugo Selo (lit. ''Long Village'') is a 20 km drive from Zagreb city centre.
The town covers an area of 51 km² and it consists of numerous settlements. The summit of the hill M ...
, where Todorić grew up. He went to school in Zagreb, where he also graduated from the Faculty of Economics.
He went to school with the former prime minister
Nikica Valentić
Nikica Valentić (; born 24 November 1950) is a Croatian entrepreneur, lawyer and politician who served as Prime Minister of Croatia from 1993 to 1995. He is to date the youngest person to have served in that capacity, being 42 years old when taki ...
.
In 1976, Todorić launched a private company producing and trading flowers. In a few years he expanded the business throughout the former Yugoslavia. Business began to expand into new opportunities - import and export of cereals, oil crops, fruits and vegetables - and, in 1989, Agrokor was registered as a joint stock company, with Todorić as its 100% stockholder. By acquiring agricultural processing and food production companies, as well as retail stores, Agrokor grew to become a leading regional conglomerate.
He used the opportunity of the war to acquire new assets.
Agrokor's operations accelerated during the
Franjo Tuđman presidency.
In 1993, Todorić obtained a very advantageous loan from the
Zagrebačka banka
Zagrebačka banka d.d. is the largest bank in Croatia, owned by UniCredit group of Italy. It was the first Croatian bank to become fully privatised in 1989 and the first one to be listed at the Zagreb Stock Exchange in 1995. It is one of 24 compan ...
to acquire the First Croatian Oil Factory and DIP Turopolje.
In 1994, Agrokor acquired the wholesale retailer Unikonzum (later renamed
Konzum
Konzum plus d.o.o. is the leading supermarket chain in Croatia, with a tradition of 65 years.
The company employs more than 10,000 people, and in Croatia has more than 600 stores in over 300 cities in the continental and coastal region. More than ...
) and the frozen goods company
Ledo.
Today, the group includes leading producers of food and drinks and the largest Croatian retail chain. In 2013, Agrokor bought
Mercator __NOTOC__
Mercator (Latin for "merchant") may refer to:
People
* Marius Mercator (c. 390–451), a Catholic ecclesiastical writer
* Arnold Mercator, a 16th-century cartographer
* Gerardus Mercator, a 16th-century cartographer
** Mercator 1569 ...
,
Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
's biggest retailer and largest employer, for 240 million euros. In 2014, Agrokor hired
Rothschild & Co
Rothschild & Co is a multinational investment bank and financial services company, and the flagship of the Rothschild banking group controlled by the French and British branches of the Rothschild family.
The banking business of the firm covers th ...
to prepare an IPO.
Todorić was one of the founders and the first president of the Croatian Employers' Association, founded in 1993.
Collapse of Agrokor
Todorić was the company's CEO until April 2017. When Agrokor's financial difficulties became untenable, in March 2017, the government of Croatia hastily drafted and passed the Law on Extraordinary Administration Procedure in Enterprises of Systematic Importance for the Republic of Croatia and, by Todorić's activation of the Law in early April 2017, the government forestalled the bankruptcy procedure and effectively took control of the company. Special administrator Ante Ramljak was appointed by the Commercial Court on 10 April 2017.
In 2019, Croatian authorities indicted Todorić on the count of sending 1.25 million euro of the company's money to a Swiss company for fictitious services. Todoric has been under investigation since November 2017 on suspicion of making an illegal gain of more than a billion kuna (120 million euro). That investigation also covers his sons Ivan and Ante Todorić and 12 Agrokor managers and auditors.
On 16 November 2021, the Zagreb County Prosecutor's Office withdrew the indictment in the Agrokor case, which accused the former conglomerate's owner Todorić and 14 others of defrauding it of HRK 1.2 billion.
Personal life
Todorić is married to Vesna Bašić-Todorić. They have three children – a daughter, Iva, and two sons, Ante and Ivan.
All three children hold senior positions within Agrokor.
The family's residence is the Kulmer Castle in Zagreb.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Todoric, Ivica
Businesspeople from Zagreb
1951 births
Living people
Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Zagreb alumni