Manatee trade mission entices officials in Spain

PORT MANATEE -- A week-long trade mission to Spain undertaken by Manatee County port and economic development officials generated a lot of questions from the moment the eight-member contingent landed in Barcelona on Nov. 16. chief among them was "Where's Bradenton?"

That reaction was hardly a surprise to Carlos Buqueras, Port Manatee's executive director and a member of the delegation. More than anything, it was an opportunity for him to market the gulf coast of Florida to more than 120 Spanish companies as a great place to enter the U.S. market.

"Companies we met with now want to get here," he said.

The trip was the first step in a new relationship between Manatee-Sarasota and the Catalonian province of Spain. The goal of the relationship is to convince Spanish exporters, manufacturers, investors and other business concerns to locate their U.S. operations near Port Manatee and in and around Bradenton and Sarasota.

Mission participants visited five Catalonian cities, toured Barcelona's international port and attended networking events, official government receptions and face-to-face sit downs with

business leaders.

Right off the bat, the mission seems to have had some success. Through 11 official events that kept the Manatee-Sarasota contingent working for 71 hours over five days, companies including a frozen food producer, several law firms, a jewelry maker and a synchronized swimming academy expressed serious interest in bringing their business or operations to Florida.

Ceasar Gomez, a business developer for Sarasota-based Jaensch Immigration Law Firm who went on the trip, said that even though Catalonia is responsible for 75 percent of Spain's gross domestic product, its business leaders are hungry to grow market share as the Spanish economy languishes under unemployment rates higher than 20 percent. In particular, the business officials he spoke to want lower taxes to help increase profits.

"They are very excited," Gomez said. "They couldn't believe the United States was so friendly toward their businesses."

Organized by Ivan Mutis, a Miami-area consultant who previously arranged meetings between Port Manatee and other Spanish companies, the trade mission isn't a one-off event. A contingent from Catalonia will likely visit the Manatee-Sarasota area early next year.

Mutis also said some business leaders he spoke to during the trip are encouraged that Port Manatee is offering low-cost office space at its International Trade Hub Incubator for companies doing overseas transplants or expansions.

"The possibility of landing initially on a hub encourages and gives them confidence to access a market," he said.

Manatee County's encouraging attitude toward new business is another likely incentive. Karen Stewart, the economic development program manager for Manatee County, said Spanish companies locating here could benefit from financial incentives and permitting assistance the county offers.

Stewart said she was particularly struck by the amount of time Spanish people put into getting to know business associates. Late-night business dinners during the trip generally stretched until 2 a.m.

"In Spain, things take much longer," she said. "People are talking more about their families and their interests. Relationship building is much more important."

Buqueras said the biggest challenge during the trip was to distinguish Manatee-Sarasota from the one Florida port the Catalonian business community is familiar with, Miami. He said he made the point that Port Manatee in particular is a gateway not only to Florida, but to the greater U.S. market and Central and South America.

"To European companies, the U.S. is still the real market," he said.

Buqueras also told his new Catalonian contacts that a move to Manatee is economical.

"It's half the cost of starting up in Miami," he said.

The Spanish mission attracted attention from Spanish television, and even from inside Florida. A Madrid-based representative of Enterprise Florida attended some of the mission's meetings. Buqueras and Mutis said the Manatee-Sarasota trip was modeled after the overseas trade missions Enterprise Florida undertakes on a regular basis.

Matt M. Johnson, Herald business reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7027, or on Twitter @MattAtBradenton.

This story was originally published November 27, 2014 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Manatee trade mission entices officials in Spain ."