Case study: the company Ecoresinas exports its sunscreens in France

admin on September 27, 2018

The company

The company ECORESINAS SLNE is dedicated to the manufacture of resins and micro-cements for floor and wall coverings, considered as building materials.

Ecoresinas has 4 types of products and one star product. There are two self-leveling floor covering products: Level Color and TRP, another epoxy floor covering product called Stone Color and a final product called Micro-cement Polyurethane.

The star product is called Microquartz and is a combination of epoxy and polyurethane floor covering that allows for natural, resistant and easy to apply floor finishes.

EcoResinas has very adequate marketing support: web responsive, Youtube, very defined graphic identity, social and professional networks (Facebook, linkedin), and online catalog. The company wants to open up the French market because it is a very well received market for innovation in floor coverings.

It sought to boost its export department and enter the French market, looking for distributors and sales agents in the construction sector.

The project

The difficulty of the project Ecoresinas lies in the fact that there is a very similar covering product often used in France: beton ciré. They have been using Beton Ciré for many years and know very well the type of product, what it is and what the negative and positive points are. This product is widely used in floor covering to obtain a natural finish, which is exactly the objective of the solutions proposed by Ecoresinas.

Beton ciré has been established in France for many years, it has many suppliers, companies in the sector that have developed networks that are very well established thanks to the time they bring.

Moreover, in France there is something different from Spain in that many products sold to large covering distributors are products that have to be referenced, it is a very important part of the process to enter and implement the product in the long term.

The commercial agents of the construction industry

There are many multi-portfolio commercial agents within the sector, thanks to which we can create a large database.

All of you show a lot of interest in learning more about Ecoresinas‘ products… The company is a very small company and therefore has to decide to limit the number of commercial agents it can manage.

It is for this reason that it has finally chosen 3 of all the agents presented to cover most of France. We wish you every success for your new venture into the French market.

Case Study: Exporting Lusan Fasteners

admin on September 17, 2018

The company LUSAN

LUSAN fijacions y anclajes, S.L. was created in 1999 by professionals with extensive experience in the hardware sector. The aim of the new company was to manufacture and supply hardware stores or industrial suppliers with a type of metal anchorage that was becoming increasingly in demand at that time.

This specialization led to a rapid acceptance and increase in both sales and the number of customers who were relying on the good work of the company.

At the same time, this constant growth led to a greater demand and variety of product range from customers, which encouraged the company to review, incorporate and expand its catalog every year, adding new business lines such as nylon, screws, lifting elements, rivets, etc…. which has led the company to have one of the largest catalogs in its sector in Spain: 5,000 product references.

On the other hand, one of the priority objectives for the coming years is the introduction and sale of products to the international market, both in Europe and in such interesting and highly promising markets as the American continent, Africa or the Middle East.

LUSAN currently sells its products in countries such as Peru, Brazil, Mexico, Costa Rica, Portugal, France, Italy, Czech Republic, Israel, Belgium, Saudi Arabia.

The trade fairs of the sector

In industrial subcontracting we can find:

– Salon Industrie: http://www.industrie-expo.com/

– Salon SEPEM: http://www.sepem-industries.com/

– Salon SIANE: http://www.salonsiane.com/

– Salon Midest: http://www.midest.com

– Salon Ouest Industries: http://www.ouest-industries.com/

And the construction ones, can be..:

– ARCHIECT@WORK – PARIS http://www.architectatwork.fr/

– EQUIPO’BAIE http://www.equipbaie.com/

– BATIMAT FRANCE https://www.batimat.com/

– IDEO BAIN https://www.ideobain.com/

– INTERCLIMA + ELEC https://www.interclimaelec.com/

– INTERMAT https://paris.intermatconstruction.com/

The French fixing market

By 2014, the fastening market was quite saturated with French companies in this industry. The market for fixed assets is worth around EUR 20 billion. In 2015, there are more than 9,000 companies offering fastening products similar to those of Lusan to the French territory.

The sector has gone through some difficult years due to the economic crisis as it is heavily dependent on the construction sector. As demand from its main purchasing sector has fallen and the remaining companies have difficulties in making ends meet, we have seen a greater influx of Chinese manufacturers with cheaper prices than the French, and Europeans in general.

Francia The main clients of the fixings in France

	Percentage %
Retail and organized sales	13,66
Independent trade	5,05
Distributors of the company’s own network	1,21
Wholesalers	11,86
Sales to professional users	63,37
Sale to individuals	2,29
Foreigner	2,56

As we can see, the main buyers of fasteners in France are end users/professionals. Only 2.56% is sold outside the country. On the other hand, 40% of the production is made outside France.

The multi-portfolio commercial agents in the fastening sector

We have decided to look for independent commercial agents to cover the maximum of French territory. We’ve done some very thorough research to narrow down the profiles. We have created one to BBDD of 50 commercial agents that is not a very extensive list. But we didn’t have to look any further as the profiles were very well identified and were what the company needed.

On the other hand, as there have been many positive responses, there have been many negotiations and drafting of contracts, even though some of them have not been successful due to the company’s decision.

A total of eight sales agents were introduced to Lusan. And we are sure that from now on they will establish Lusan’s presence on the French market. We wish our client much success in the future.

Case study: Motores Campeón and the gardening sector in France

admin on September 15, 2018

Who is Motores Campeón?

Motores Campeón is a Catalan company that manufactures and distributes electropumps mainly for gardening. Since 1997, it has had a strong experience in the sector, a product of its own manufacturing with high added value, a good after-sales service and a spare parts service in less than 24 hours.

Aware that the French market is one of the most important in the world of gardening, they decided to push their exports towards the most active market of their activity. And they intend to do so through a network of sales agents throughout France.

There are many competitors and players in the field of pumps and compressors for professionals. The market is highly developed and competitive.

Export history in France

A few years ago, Motores Campeon lost its leading position on the French market and its export turnover in France fell considerably, which is why it decided to strengthen its network of multi-portfolio sales agents in the gardening sector.

The French gardening market

In France, 17.2 million people regularly live in houses. More than half of the houses have a garden area of at least 600 m², and 89% of the French houses have a garden area at home. The median area of the garden is the highest in Europe, with a median area of 500 m².

French garden and DIY sellers

It was relatively easy for us to identify the commercial agents in the sector. We have created a database of 30 sales agents, covering all regions of France.

After the company presentation, we were able to identify and introduce 7 agents who were interested in the company. These agents from a wide range of fields are looking for, among others, the following channels: distribution of gardening products, companies in the gardening, DIY, forestry and agriculture sectors in general, central gardening purchasing, PPE, hardware, industrial supply, public works and DIY distribution.

Motores Campeon has decided to negotiate and sign the representation contract with 4 of them, to whom it has given initial training and with whom it has already started working.

We wish our client every success in this new internationalization to the neighbouring country.

The export of the promotional object in France

admin on August 29, 2018

Barcelona Export recently accompanied Tèxtil Campasol, manufacturer of customizable sports towels, in its export process. This international support has reinforced our knowledge of the object communication market in France. Read this article carefully to know the trends of this market, if you intend to export promotional items in France.

The object communication market in France

First, it should be noted that this is an important market: advertisers invest 1.323 billion euros each year in this segment. There are around 2,000 distributors specialized in the field, all objects combined.

Why communicate by object?

We found that customers, particularly French, are particularly receptive to communication by object. For 42% of them, this improves the image of the company.

However, the communication object must be of good quality. Indeed, if the object is not qualitative, 65% of the users do not wish to buy back the distributing brand. That’s why it’s important to focus on quality. Tèxtil Campasol has also understood this differentiating element and all the production is done in Europe, far from the massive production coming from Asia.

What are the most requested communication objects?

In France, there are many communication companies with a wide range of products and they offer a wide variety of products: bags, textiles, glasses and mugs, as well as calendars, pens and personalized notepads.

In fact, stationery items are the most requested items (60%), followed by T-shirts and polos (30%). Other textile articles represent only 10% of the market, but they have the advantage of being kept longer. On the contrary, stationery is only kept for about 6 months.

What are the criteria of choice?

For an object of communication to be effective, the French consider that it must be useful (86%), but also original and aesthetic. It must also be fun for 36% of them. For example, Tèxtil Campasol sports towels are perfectly adapted to the needs of users in the sports practice market.

In addition, 80% of users would like to receive more objects of communication: it is a market in strong growth. This really allows users to remember the brand. 99% of them keep the promotional items for themselves or a loved one.

When are these objects used?

The promotional items are not reserved for the end of year celebrations. Events and especially sports competitions are particularly conducive to the distribution of personalized goodies. They are also found in trade shows and exhibitions.

They are also highly appreciated by companies that use the communication by the object internally and their customers to promote their services and retain their employees.

Thus, our experience during the export accompaniment of Tèxtil Campasol sports towels was instructive. The object communication market in France is strong and very competitive. By offering differentiating and quality objects, such as customizable sports towels, we will be able to attract the customer and build a lasting and solid image for him.

Case of success: The internationalization of GMS Sistemas

admin on June 6, 2018

Case of success: The internationalisation of GMS Sistemas

GMS Sistemas: The company

GMS Sistemas is a Catalan company devoted to the making of feeding and positioning systems, such as vibrating feeders or robotic arms, for small pieces. It is also part of the corporate group PMZ Comatrans. At this point, they have accumulated experience and Know-how in the course of 25 years. GMS targets mainly the pharmaceutical, cosmetics and, not to mention, packaging sector.

The offered solutions

– Particularly, the SmartFeeder (a robotic arm for a flexible solution)
– Vibrating feeder for caps, valves, dosing pumps, car wheels,…
– Mechanic feeder for coffee capsules, Alimentador mecánica para cápsulas de café, syringes
– Centrifugal feeder for plastic crown caps
– Slat elevator for cosmetic products, screws, spherical plain bearings,
– Positioners for bottles, pharmaceutical tubes and containers

Participation at Hispack as international stepping stone

Our client GMS Sistemas started working with us in October 2017. Besides benefitting of our service for prospecting for France, they informed us about their participation at Hispack 2018 in the course of the year. They not only asked us for an agenda with international meetings but also for our accompaniment during the fair. Therefore, we organized their commercial documentations and created the contact mails and invitations for the fair. Hence we picked 8 different countries for the contact search, which were: UK, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Mexico, Brazil and Argentina. These contacts included distributors, integrators, manufacturers for special machinery. Furthermore, we also looked for final clients of the pharmaceutical, cosmetics and packaging industry as well as coffee capsules.

With reference to the topic “Natural Evolution”, the corporate group PMZ presented itself at the fair Hispack with a completely renewed image, showing the whole range of qualitative solutions for the fields of automation and positioning of pieces.

If you would like to find out more about the products of GMS Sistemas and PMZ Comatrans, feel free to watch this interview. It was filmed for the magazine Infopack with Xavier Sanchez, the group’s director, during the fair Hispack.

More related information:

Service for international fairs

Case of success: The internationalisation of La Cuina de la Iaia’s gourmet croquettes

Case of success: The internationalisation of Singular Spirits’ artisanal spirits

Alimentaria 2018

Vinisud 2018, the French trade-show of the Mediterranean wines

Girona Gastronomical Forum 2017

Brokerage Event at Smart City Expo World Congress Barcelona 2017

The visit to Sial Paris 2016: great success of the exporting group of the Maresme

Case of success: La Cuina de la Iaia and its gourmet croquettes

admin on May 11, 2018

Case of success: The internationalisation of La Cuina de la Iaia’s gourmet croquettes

La Cuina de la Iaia: the company

La Cuina de la Iaia is a Catalan company dedicated to the making and commercialization of gourmet croquettes for the most demanding palates. In short, a young family-run company, whose manager is a curious and innovative chef, who constantly develops new flavours with which he keeps seducing his customers. Without doubt recipes, that are different and surprising and that leave no one indifferent.

Gourmet croquettes: The preparation process

La Cuina de la Iaia develops handmade gourmet croquettes for which it selects the best ingredients and raw materials: products with outstanding quality of which some have designation of origin (DO). In addition, the cooker works at the necessary pace to preserve the original taste of the gourmet croquettes. Furthermore, its batter is a special batter that gives the gourmet croquettes a crunchy touch, even hours after cooking. The croquettes are frozen after processing in order to preserve their taste and aromas intact, while at the same time allowing for an optimal consumption date of 12 months. The percentages of the main ingredients are very high so that they provide an intense and characteristic flavour.

A this time, La Cuina de la Iaia offers its croquettes for the hotel and catering industry (HORECA) in three formats:

– normal (25gr)

– croquetón

– mini o còctel.

These classic tapas are served in the best Spanish hotels, restaurants and caterings.

The product range

At the present time, the flavours offered to the customers are:

– Roasted chicken
– Ham
– Spider crab
– Cod
– Cod, orange and sesame
– Mushrooms with goat cheese
– Cabrales with caramelised onion
– Pepper with olives
– Spinach with pine nuts and raisins
– Vegan: onion and carrot
– Pizza
– Chocolate with Orange
– Sobrasada
– Foie gras and mushrooms
– Black pudding and mushrooms
– Emmental and bacon
– Prawns
– Gorgonzola and walnuts
– Chicken curry

The fair Alimentaria as international stepping Stone

Our client La Cuina de la Iaia started working with us a couple of years ago. Above all, the challenge of the project comes from the fact that it is a frozen product that is logistically difficult and expensive. During this year, they informed us of their participation in Alimentaria 2018 and asked us for an agenda of international meetings, as well as the accompaniment at the fair.

Barcelona Export was in charge of preparing an agenda of scheduled meetings at the stand during the days of the fair, as well as managing the agendas of contacts from Alimentaria’s matchmaking. Hence, we organised the commercial documentation and wrote the contact e-mails and invitations to the fair.

The five countries we chose for our search of importers/ distributors of frozen products were: Germany, Italy, France, Belgium and the Netherlands. By using the matchmaking of the exhibition Alimentaria, we also contacted importers from many more countries.

As a result, La Cuina de la Iaia came to the fair Alimentaria with an agenda of 31 scheduled meetings in the course of the 4 days of the exhibition.

Results of the international commercial prospection

All in all, we are very pleased to be able to confirm the great success of La Cuina de la Iaia’s participation at Alimentaria 2018. During the event, more than 3,300 croquettes were cooked and tasted by the visitors who came to the stand. Its delicious croquettes, together with the prospecting efforts of Barcelona Export, resulted in a fair that ended up bringing 161 new contacts to our client.

So we accompanied our client at the stand to attend the meetings with potential clients from countries as diverse as: Spain, France, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Switzerland, Argentina, Chile, Mexico, Panama, USA, El Salvador, Guatemala, UK and Libya.

After the fair, we are writing the e-mails to thank for visiting our stand at Alimentaria and following up on your visit. In this situation, we have created a large database of potential importers and distributors of the 4th and 5th range of the HORECA channel, with whom they can begin to close commercial distribution agreements.

Thank you for this kind and tasty relationship! Your success is assured.

Examples for other realized services:

Case of success: The internationalisation of Singular Spirits’ artisanal spirits

The Spanish international fair of the agri-food sector: Alimentaria 2018

Vinisud 2018, the French trade-show of the Mediterranean wines

Barcelona Export visits the Girona Gastronomical Forum 2017

Barcelona Export participates in the Brokerage Event at Smart City Expo World Congress Barcelona 2017

The visit to Sial Paris 2016: great success of the exporting group of the Maresme

Barcelona Export carries out the international trip to the Sial Paris 2016 for 10 companies from Maresme

10 companies from Maresme at the International exhibition of Food Sial Paris 2016

Case of success: Singular Spirits, artisanal spirits

admin on May 9, 2018

The successful internationalisation of Singular Spirits’ artisanal spirits

Singular Spirits: the company

Singular Spirits is a company from Madrid dedication to themaking and commercialisation of artisanal spirits of high quality, more precisely of Gins and Vodkas. A young company that has managed to develop new formulations, that are different and refreshing. It is committed to quality during the distillation and a refined marketing. Moreover, it focuses on a new consummation concept based on high quality products that bring new experiences to the consumers.

Handcrafted spirits of high quality: the manufacturing process

As has been noted, Singular Spirits produces Gin and Vodka of high quality with local Spanish ingredients. The production is artisanal, in small numbered batches with the aim to always achieve the most delicate and the purest alcohol.

Characteristics of Singular Spirits’ distillates in brief:

– 100% natural ingredients: without chemicals, colourings, or added sugars

– Local product: with unique recipes and local ingredients

– Traditional distillation: in small batches that allow to remain quality, purity and creativity.

– Micro-distillation: elaboration and development in independent micro distilleries of the latest generation. Copper stills.

The product range

At this point, Singular Spirits’ product range is composed of:

1… Iradier y Bulfi Dry Gin: London Dry Gin, 100% natural, 42º, 7 botanicals. exclusive distillation of 300l, numbered bottles.

2… Iradier y Bufi Sipping Vodka: 100% natural, greatest purity, low distillations in copper. direct fermentation in the distillery. without additives. exclusive distillation of 300l. numbered bottles.

3… Martín Sessé Madrid Dry Gin: London Dry Gin, 100% natural, 42º. 14 natural and native botanicals, distillations of 600l. numbered bottles. slow distillation in copper. free of chemicals and sweeteners.

4… R.I.P Unfiltered Vodka: alcohol from the Tempranillo grape and grain, 4 distillations, 40º, distillations of 150l. numbered bottles. slow distillation in copper. free of chemicals and sweeteners.

Original and refined marketing

The whole product range has a story behind each of the brands in order to turn every tasting into a different and original experience. To every brand corresponds a name that conceals an adventurous and romantic story that helps us to enjoy our cocktails.

With a distinct and vintage look, Singular Spirits’ bottles remind us of those old pharmaceutical bottles in which the formulations were brewed. They also carry us to the Wild West. And this is the inspiration for the whole corporate and communication image.

Participation at Alimentaria as international stepping stone

Soon after deciding to participate at the Alimentaria 2018, our client Singular Spirits came to us, seeing need to make their presence profitable with their own stand design.

Barcelona Export was in charge of preparing an agenda with appointments for meetings at the stand during the days of the fair, as well as of managing the contact agendas coming from Alimentaria’s matchmaking. Hence, we organized their commercial documentation and we composed the contact mails and invitations to the fair.

Six different countries were chosen for the search for importers/ distributors of spirits and liquids, such as: UK, Germany, France, Benelux, Portugal and Italy. By seizing the Matchmaking of the exhibition, we also contacted importers / distributors of alcoholic beverages in the USA, Japan and Latin America.

Singular Spirits went to the trade show Alimentaria with 25 agreed contacts spread during the 4 days of the fair.

Results of the international commercial prospection

After all, it is our pleasure to declare that the participation of Singular Spirits at the Alimentaria was as impressive as their products themselves. Their stand design and their products of great attractiveness together with Barcelona Export’s prospection efforts resulted in an event that ended up bringing 124 new contacts to our client. The majority passed by our stand and took the opportunity to taste their Gins and Vodkas. Others requested information via mail and telephone, since they could not come to Barcelona.

We accompanied our client at the stand during the days of the exhibition in order to assist them with different languages and ways of negotiating with the different countries. People from various countries dropped by to visit: Spain, Catalonia, Austria, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Germany, Guatemala, Indonesia, Italia, Kenya, Latvia, Malaysia, Malta, Portugal, Norway, Paraguay, Peru, UK, Taiwan, USA, Sweden, Singapore, Romania, Russia, Tunisia, Czech Republic, El Salvador, Switzerland and Qatar.

After the fair we took care of writing the mails thanking for the visit at the stand at Alimentaria. Furthermore, we were in charge of the follow up. Additionally, we could provide an extensive data base with possible importers and distributors of international liquors and distillates. They can now start to close commercial deals for distribution.

We wish Singular Spirits a unique and successful internationalization!

Examples for other realized services:

The Spanish international fair of the agri-food sector: Alimentaria 2018

Vinisud 2018, the French trade-show of the Mediterranean wines

Barcelona Export visits the Girona Gastronomical Forum 2017

Barcelona Export participates in the Brokerage Event at Smart City Expo World Congress Barcelona 2017

The visit to Sial Paris 2016: great success of the exporting group of the Maresme

Barcelona Export carries out the international trip to the Sial Paris 2016 for 10 companies from Maresme

10 companies from Maresme at the International exhibition of Food Sial Paris 2016

The visit to Sial Paris 2016: great success of the exporting group of the Maresme

admin on October 30, 2016

The time has come for the Exporting Group of Maresme to accompany ten companies from the Food Industry to the SIAL PARIS 2016 Global Food Marketplace.

Satisfaction was met: it was a huge success for the products introduced and new relationships were born, which will hopefully lead to new business opportunities.

Our mission

At Barcelona Export, we had the pleasure in attending the fair, supporting the companies of this exporting group in their negotiations and translations providing them with a commercial and attractive speech for the French buyers.

The meetings

Each one of the companies of this exporting group attended this fair with contacts already set by Barcelona Export, so that they could make the most of their visit, and speed up the process of acquiring new business possibilities.

New business opportunities

Once all the interviews were over, we seized the opportunity of visiting the Fair to look directly for new business opportunities on the fair itself, and introduce the products to stands with the most interesting profile of making new business.

We also could identify the trends of the market and what was the perception that French companies had about Catalan products. In fact we were able to analyze the competition and the adequacy between the packaging of our clients and the market’s expectations.

See our last news: 10 companies from Maresme at the International exhibition of Food Sial Paris 2016

The company

The project

The commercial agents of the construction industry

Other related links:

The company LUSAN

The trade fairs of the sector

The French fixing market

Francia The main clients of the fixings in France

The multi-portfolio commercial agents in the fastening sector

Other links of interest:

Who is Motores Campeón?

Export history in France

The French gardening market

French garden and DIY sellers

Other links of interest:

The object communication market in France

Why communicate by object?

What are the most requested communication objects?

What are the criteria of choice?

When are these objects used?

Other related links:

GMS Sistemas: The company

The offered solutions

Participation at Hispack as international stepping stone

More related information:

La Cuina de la Iaia: the company

Gourmet croquettes: The preparation process

The product range

The fair Alimentaria as international stepping Stone

Results of the international commercial prospection

Other links of interest:

Examples for other realized services:

Singular Spirits: the company

Handcrafted spirits of high quality: the manufacturing process

Characteristics of Singular Spirits’ distillates in brief:

The product range

Original and refined marketing

Participation at Alimentaria as international stepping stone

Results of the international commercial prospection

Other interesting links:

Examples for other realized services:

The time has come for the Exporting Group of Maresme to accompany ten companies from the Food Industry to the SIAL PARIS 2016 Global Food Marketplace.

Our mission

The meetings

New business opportunities