Construction in Estonia: Few Orders, Fighting for Each One 0 9

After several years of turbulence, the construction market in Estonia seems to have found its bottom. Co-owner of the company Rita Vialing explains how to survive without dumping, maintain a team during a crisis, and how family partnerships prove to be stronger than classic business alliances.

-Rita, how would you characterize the past year 2025 for your market? Was it a year of stabilization after the economic shocks of previous years, or did it bring new challenges?

• The construction market in Estonia has been operating under high uncertainty for about four years now. For us, this is the "new normal": projects are postponed, budgets are revised, and developers are cautious. According to the registries, it was evident that some competitors were in the red last year. We were lucky at first, but in 2025 the crisis reached us too. It was a year of survival and professional discipline – we had to control cash flows to pay salaries, taxes on time, and maintain the team and quality.

What was the largest and most interesting project for you last year?

• There were few large projects, many medium and small ones. Each one had to be fought for. The largest ones were two: we worked on Kindrali Majad (this is Pro Kapital) and the Kotzebue project in the Kalamaja area – we were making railings there.

Did you face pressure from clients? Do you see that clients want to lower the price?

• Clients always want a lower price; this is their permanent state and a normal part of a competitive market. As for dumping, we do not use this term at all. Dumping is the deliberate lowering of prices below cost, when you take on a project with a known loss. Vitrecon does not participate in such schemes. It is a path that will not end well.

Did you face pressure from clients? Do you see that clients want to lower the price? Clients always want a lower price; this is their permanent state and a normal part of a competitive market. As for dumping, we do not use this term at all. Dumping is the deliberate lowering of prices below cost, when you take on a project with a known loss. Vitrecon does not participate in such schemes. It is a path that will not end well.