Kuldīga entrepreneur Una Šildere expands family business with new camper park
AM Una, a Kuldīga company that has provided freight transport and car repair services for over 20 years, opened a camper park on Tehnikas Street this summer. Daughter Una Šildere is now taking a growing role alongside her parents, balancing careful calculation with intuition in business decisions.
A new camper park opened this summer on Tehnikas Street in Kuldīga, adding a fresh branch to the family business SIA AM Una, which has offered freight transport and car repair services for more than 20 years.
The company was founded in the early 2000s by Aira and Marekss Mežiņš, after Marekss lost his job in the rural area of Gudenieki and bought his first truck, hauling grain and meat products. The early years were difficult: there was no online banking, and payments had to be handled by hand-written bank orders while standing in line.
From cultural management to freight transport
Their daughter, Una Šildere, initially chose a different path, studying cultural management at Liepāja University and working in Padure and at the Ventspils culture centre. However, frequent travel and having to work on holidays did not suit her, so she moved into her father's business, where she had already been helping thanks to her English language skills.
Today Una sits on the company's board alongside her father, while her mother Aira works as office manager. The company employs 15 people, including seven drivers and three service technicians. Una handles mostly documentation and invoicing, while trusting her father's experience and intuition for bigger decisions, such as purchasing new vehicles.
Careful cost calculations
Most transport work takes place within Latvia, since trips abroad brought little profit and kept drivers away from home for long periods. Una notes that the company carefully calculates all costs — fuel, wages, insurance, taxes and various permits — which makes her question how competitors manage to offer significantly lower prices.
A new tourism offering
The idea for the camper park came from the parents' own long-standing habit of traveling by camper van. The site on Tehnikas Street can accommodate 15 campers and includes an electricity connection and a renovated building with toilet and shower facilities. Despite less favorable weather this summer, the park has been used by many travelers, particularly from abroad, who praised its cleanliness and upkeep.
