Worries don't solve anything - Matic Konc in Demokracija 2021

Original article published in March 2021 in the weekly Demokracija

Matic Konc owns the company Smrekovit, where he continues the mission of exploring the remarkable effects of spruce resin. His father, Ivo Konc, suffered from back problems from a young age and found relief with preparations made from resin by a traditional healer. He was the first to make a spruce ointment in this part of Europe.

"Smrekovit was started by my father Ivo Konc, who produced the first spruce ointment in this part of Europe in 1989 and opened the company in 1990. I wanted to continue the mission I had started, because I had always seen the amazing effects of the resin and was fascinated by it. I also have a bit of design flair, and that's what I enjoy about my work," says Matic Konc. Started in 1990 by his father, Matic Konc has been running the company since 2010.   

Ivo Konc's health problems

Ivo Konc has had back problems since he was young. The problems were so severe that he was exempted from military service in the then JNA and from the practical part of the examinations in the final year of the Faculty of Sport (then the University of Physical Culture) in Ljubljana. The specialist advised him to have an operation if he did not want to be in a wheelchair at 30. He did not go to the doctor anymore about his illness, but the resin preparation of the folk healer “Prežla” from Lesce in Gorenjska helped him tremendously. Through this he became familiar with the healing power of resin and began thinking about how to make its use more accessible. He thus became familiar with the healing power of the resin and considered how to make its use more user-friendly. In 1989, he was inspired and made the first spruce ointment on a burner in front of the garage. The ointment has helped him enormously with his ailments (he will be 73 this year and is still as limber as a young man) and he also gave it to a neighbour who complained of hip pain. It helped her a lot too, and it started a chain reaction. First through friends and acquaintances, then by word of mouth, the spruce ointment, then known as "Konc's Ointment" and today as Smrekovit Klasik, spread throughout the whole of what was then Yugoslavia within a year, so that by 1990 he had already quit his job as a professor of physical education and opened a business.

A friendly and efficient product range

"I've been involved in the company practically since I was a child, but I took it over in 2010 and over the following years I've upgraded the product range to even more user-friendly and efficient products. We still make products exclusively with resin," said Matic Konc, adding that his personal goal was to make products that were more specifically useful and user-friendly. Smrekovit Klasik was (and still is) used for degenerative changes such as joint inflammation, spinal problems, etc., as well as for internal use (e.g. oral inflammation, inflammation of the stomach lining, stomach wounds, etc.), but its use for this purpose is unfavourable, as it has a very unpleasant and bitter taste, and it is very oily to the touch when used externally. Matic Konc: "For external use, I have developed the spruce creams Smrekovit 365 and Smrekovit 365 Extra, which are non-greasy, absorbed into the skin and, due to their better absorption, are even more effective than the ointment. For internal use, I have developed much more user-friendly capsules for the stomach and intestines, and Smrekovit oral spray for inflammations in the oral cavity (sore throat and gums, mouth mouth ulcers - aphthae). Smrekovit Klasik is still more recommended

Personally, he finds his work fulfilling, mainly because he doesn't have to offer himself to anyone.

for open wounds and use on mucous membranes. Business has since become more predictable… Business has become more predictable, especially when it comes to connecting with business partners. In the beginning, they worked mainly directly with individual pharmacies and stores that approached them because people wanted their products, but later they were also approached by larger wholesalers. There was a fear of such cooperation in the beginning, but they have caught on and things are now more predictable than before, as deliveries are planned in advance and stock planning is easier. As far as end-users ordering from them via their website and by telephone are concerned, things have always been predictable, with the daily, weekly, monthly and yearly graph of order volumes fluctuating somewhat in the same rhythm, only the amount varies.

A desire to take more decisive steps towards sustainability

"I have no specific plans for the future. I consider the products to be at the highest possible level at this time, so I'm not developing any new ones at the moment. I just want to take more drastic steps towards sustainability. We have already succeeded to a large extent by replacing conventional ingredients with organic ones and by certifying our products, by replacing some packaging materials with sustainable ones such as glass, and we have managed to replace practically all the paper we use (including in packaging) with 100% recycled paper. We have plans to replace plastic cups for ointments with glass ones and to replace the adhesive tape we use for packaging with recycled paper. If we were back to square one, we would not change a thing. The only thing is that we might have developed some products earlier, for which, at a certain stage, development was held up for a few years because of additional study. 

Word of mouth marketing

Konc finds his work personally fulfilling, mainly because he does not have to offer himself to anyone, because marketing has been exclusively word-of-mouth for years, and above all because he receives only positive feedback on a daily basis. There is very little negative feedback, but most of it is related to resin allergy, which occurs in 3-4% of the population. People understand this because they are warned about it on the packaging. So far, their work has not been affected by corona crysis. They were completely shut down for a week because they were also going through COVID-19 (with mild symptoms) and then quarantined. They currently work with five employees, though not all are full-time; most are engaged on a more flexible basis.  

Monitoring, researching and documenting the effects of resin as a challenge

"My challenge is to monitor, research and document the effects of the resin. I am extremely grateful for all the feedback we get, and for the people who are willing to come regularly to assist in the treatment of certain problems and allow the treatment to be documented", emphasises the interlocutor, who tries to stick to accepting what he cannot change and changing what he can, and tries to distinguish between the two options. "Worrying doesn't solve anything", he believes.  

A sociable man, proud of his children

I would describe myself as an open and sociable person who likes to joke around, and I would describe my company in one word - pitch. He is most proud of his children. He is a professor of sports education and an engineer in laboratory biomedicine, graduating from the Faculty of Sport in Ljubljana in 2011 with a degree in sports coaching, and from the Faculty of Pharmacy in 2018 with a degree in laboratory biomedicine. Before that, he completed the vocational baccalaureate at the Secondary Medical School and the general baccalaureate at Kranj High School. He has no role models, but he took his business philosophy - resisting constant business growth and the pursuit of profit - from his father, but he would not have adopted it if he had not identified with it himself. In his personal life, his inspiration is Jesus Christ.