Spanish Chamber of Commerce in the United Kingdom

Etiqueta: corporate events

131st AGM 2018

On Thursday 5^th July, during a particularly warm and summery evening, the Spanish Chamber of Commerce hosted its 131^st Annual General Meeting and dinner, one of the most important events of our annual calendar. This year, the event took place at One Great George Street in Westminster, a beautiful grade II listed Edwardian building which is also the global headquarters of the Institution of Civil Engineers and close to the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey and St James’s Park.

On this occasion we were honoured to welcome the Rt Hon David Lidington CBE MP, Minister for the Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.

As is the case each year, the event began with the Annual General Meeting which is held exclusively for members of the Chamber; in the Palmer Room of the venue. During the meeting the Executive Committee of the Chamber presented the financial statements of 2017 along with a memorandum of the activities and events which the Chamber had organised during this year. The meeting was presided by the Ambassador of Spain in the United Kingdom Mr. Carlos Bastarreche Sagues, the Honorary Vice Presidents Mr. José Riera Siquier and Mrs Inmaculada López, the President of the Chamber of Commerce Mr. Eduardo Barrachina and the Secretary General of the Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Igor Urra.

Following the meeting, a cocktail reception was held in the grand Smeaton Room, where members who had participated in the AGM meeting were joined by the rest of the guests as they arrived. During the reception, guests were able to enjoy a cold glass of Cuvée 1872 Brut cava kindly provided by Codorniú Raventós, patron of the Chamber, as well as El Aprendiz tinto and El Aprendiz Blanco red and white wines from Leyenda del Páramo. Ibérico ham was also served during the reception, as provided by Ibérica Restaurants; another patron of the Chamber.

Following the drinks reception and once almost all of the guests had arrived, including the Guest of Honour, all guests were ushered upstairs to the Great Hall. Once they had all taken their seats, a loyal toast was held to the King and Queen of both Spain and the United Kingdom, before the national anthems of both countries were played. Following this were the speeches, of which the Chamber’s new President, Eduardo Barrachina of White & Case LLP, spoke first. Among other things, he talked about the activities and developments that had taken place within the Chamber during the previous year and what he hoped that the following year would bring. The Spanish Ambassador then expressed his sincere gratitude to the institution for allowing him to share such an important evening with our members and attendees, before kindly introducing the Guest of Honour, Mr. David Lidington. He spoke in depth about Brexit and the changes that this has and would continue to bring about, while also describing the important relationship between Spain and the UK and how this should continue.

Once the speeches had concluded, guests enjoyed a delicious three course dinner which included roast beef. Members and their guests were able to meet each other, establishing new contacts and exchanging impressions of the evening.

We would very much like to thank our members and their guests for joining us on the occasion of our 131^st Annual General Meeting and for sharing such a special evening for our institution. We are truly grateful to our patron Raventós Codorníu for their contribution of the cava and Leyenda del Páramo for providing the wines that were served throughout the event as well as Ibérica Restaurants, patron of the Chamber, for providing the ham.

Please click here to access the complete gallery of pictures of the 131^st Annual General Meeting. For a short video on how the evening went, please click on the following link 130^th Annual General Meeting Video.

For further information about events in 2018, do not hesitate to visit our Upcoming Events section at www.spanishchamber.co.uk or subscribe to our newsletter to receive fortnightly updates straight to your inbox.

19/07/2018
ANNUAL PATRONS’ DINNER 2018

On Tuesday 20^th March the Spanish Chamber organised the Annual Patrons’ Dinner. The event was held at the Spanish Embassy and H.E. the Ambassador of Spain Mr. Carlos Bastarreche Sagües was our exceptional host for the evening.

Our guests were welcomed with a selection of canapés that they could enjoy while tasting the selection of cava and wine, which was kindly sponsored by our Patron Raventós Codorníu, as well as beers kindly provided by our Patron Mahou-San Miguel during the pre-dinner reception. This was the perfect opportunity for new Patrons to introduce themselves and get acquainted with the rest of representatives in attendance.

After the reception, Patrons proceeded to the dining area to take their seats and get ready to enjoy a three-course dinner which consisted of pumpkin risotto with chestnut pesto, grilled sirloin steak with braised pork cheek and dauphinoise and mascarpone cheesecake with peanut butter.

Before dinner was served Mr. Javier San Basilio, President of the Spanish Chamber, opened the evening with a special speech expressing his gratitude for the support that Patrons provide to this institution and warmly thanked the Ambassador for kindly welcoming the Patrons on his first event with the Spanish Chamber.

He also mentioned the new Patrons that the Chamber has gained since the last year’s dinner which were: DLA Piper, Trison, Ibérica Restaurants and Sacyr.

After the President, it was the turn of H.E. the Ambassador Mr. Carlos Bastarreche Sagües, who began his speech by thanking the Spanish Chamber for the organisation and gave an overview of the current economic and political situation in the UK and Spain in the context of Brexit.

After the speeches, it was time for guests to enjoy the dinner and later to move on to the main reception room, where coffee and petit fours were served. Attendees enjoyed thus the end of the event in a comfortable atmosphere and could exchange impressions with the Ambassador and the President of the Chamber. This was the perfect closure for this exclusive gathering.

We would like to thank our Patron Raventós Codorníu for their generous support providing the wines and cava served during the event and also special thanks to our Patron Mahou-San Miguel for kindly sponsoring the beer and water at this special evening.

Finally, we are grateful to our Patrons for their attendance and we look forward to seeing them at the next Patrons’Event.

To see the complete pictures of the evening, please click here.

If you would like to be updated on forthcoming activities, do not hesitate to sign up for our weekly newsletter. Alternatively, you can also check out our event in the UPCOMING EVENTS section within our website.

02/07/2018
A BRIEF RECAP OF THE CHAMBER’S ACTIVITIES IN 2017

The Chamber’s main aim is to promote commercial exchange by acting as an important communication link between Spanish and British companies. The events organised by the Chamber enable both member and non-member companies to develop and expand their contact networks from both countries.

Over the course of 2017 the Spanish Chamber of Commerce organised over 30 events with an average of 65 individuals attending each. These events included seminars, conferences, business breakfasts, cocktail evenings, informal parties and corporate dinners.

CORPORATE EVENTS

On the 2^nd of February we hosted our first corporate event of 2017. The New Year’s Drinks Reception was held in the exclusive Ironmongers’ Hall where the president of the Chamber, Javier San Basilio, had the opportunity to wish all member companies his best wishes for the New Year. We were honoured to welcome Miriam Gonzalez Durantez, partner of international law firm Dechert LLP and founder and chairman of Inspiring Girls, as our Guest of Honour on this occasion.

In April we also celebrated the Annual Golden Award at the Embassy of Spain in London. Mr. Josep Oliu, Chairman of Banco Sabadell, received the award on behalf the company for the acquisition of TSB the previous year. There were approximately 250 guests present at this event, our largest of the year.

The Annual Patrons Dinner took place the 28^th of March at the Spanish Embassy in London and was hosted by the Ambassador of Spain, Mr. Carlos Bastarreche Sagües. In addition to this, on the 14^th of June the Annual General Meeting, considered as one of our institution’s most important events of the year, took place at Merchant Taylors’ Hall; one of London’s oldest traditional Livery Halls that remains active. We were delighted to welcome Ms. Marisa Poncela García, Secretary of State for Trade, as our Guest of Honour on this occasion. During the members’ General Meeting, the Executive Committee of the Chamber presented the Financial Statements of 2016 as well as the memorandum of the activities and events organised by the Chamber during this year. The quadrennial Executive Committee Election was also carried out as part of this event, during which 22 members of the Chamber were chosen to join the Committee of the Chamber.

On the evening of the 6^th December we held our final corporate event of the year, the highly anticipated VIII Annual Gala Dinner which was held at the iconic Christ Church Spitalfields in the City of London. This black tie event, which saw approximately 230 guests in attendance, was presided by the Ambassador of Spain Carlos Bastarreche Sagües and welcomed António Horta Osório, CEO of Lloyds Banking Group, as its esteemed Guest of Honour.

We additionally organised a wide variety of Seminars over the course of 2017 which were led by individuals who are greatly experienced in their fields. Topics of the sessions included Brexit’s potential implications on immigration, employment and tax, the different ways to detect and investigate corporate fraud and the examination of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

Furthermore, 2017 saw four Elevator Pitch events being hosted by our member companies, each being filled to full capacity. The assistance is capped each time to 16 individuals, all representing different companies with a maximum of two being from the same sector. Each participant has two minutes to give a concise presentation summarising their company’s activities, answer any questions about their work and share their business card with the rest of participants; a highly effective way for participants to expand their business networks in a small amount of time.

Finally, there were two Financial Forums that took place in 2017. This events, which are exclusively managed by the Chamber, provide Spanish professionals with the opportunity to come together and exchange ideas about the current financial climate. On these occasions, members shared their opinions with two exceptional guests: Sebastián Albella, President of the Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores (the Spanish Regulatory Authority for the Securities Market) and Román Escolano, Vice-President of the European Investment Bank.

INFORMAL EVENTS

With respect to less formal events, our series of internal parties organised in collaboration with our patron Mahou proved to be a great success, each hosting an average of 90 attendees from over 50 companies. These events offered our members the opportunity to relax and expand their contact network over an after work drink. The events took place at various locations and we would like to thank Ibérica and Trison (patrons of the Chamber) along with Hispania and Dry Martini (members of the Chamber) for hosting the parties.

We would also like to mention the noteworthy activities which the Chamber has been either directly or indirectly involved with. In June, with the aim of promoting the Spanish culture the Chamber organised a Spanish Tapas Tour, a new gastronomic event which brought the very best flavours of Spanish cuisine to London. Ten of the city’s best Spanish restaurants offered a tapa and a drink at a fixed price, with dishes that represented various regions of Spain. The event was a great success with more than 350 tapas being sold.

With regards to events developed in collaboration with the Council of Foreign Chambers, the most prominent was the International Wine Tasting which took place on the 18th September at Middle Temple Hall in the City of London. Almost 300 guests came together to broaden their international business networks with peers from other Chambers while sampling a delicious array of wines, beers and spirits from around the world.

COMMERCIAL ACTIVITIES

Regarding our commercial activities, last year the Spanish Chamber conducted nine Commercial Agendas within five different sectors including telecommunications, financial services and food and beverage suppliers. This service forms part of the Business Promotion activities carried out by the Chamber and provides a commercial representation for contracting companies, which are either Spanish businesses wishing to sell their products in the UK or British companies wishing to invest in and/or export to Spain.

The Spanish Chamber also successfully realised two Reverse Trade Missions in the wine sector during 2017. The purpose of this activity was to increase the importation and exportation of local products. Furthermore, it enables contracting companies to showcase the design and manufacturing of their goods and services which could be traded with potential clients to support them in reaching their exportation aims. The reverse trade missions target current and near-term business opportunities, creating immediate results and export successes for Spanish businesses.

In summary, 2017 was another successful year for the Chamber which both embraced and promoted the vital business relationships between Spain and the UK. We would like to warmly thank our members, guests and sponsors for supporting our work at the various events we held and we hope that they found them as profitable as we did.

24/01/2018
COMING SOON: OUR 129TH ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

We are pleased to announce that our 129^th Annual General Meeting will be held on Wednesday 8^th June at the exclusive Drapers’ Hall, located in the heart of the City of London.

This corporate event is one of the most important activities that the Spanish Chamber organises during the year and it is attended by leading representatives from a wide range of British and Spanish companies. Following tradition, the event will be presided by H.E. the Ambassador of Spain, Mr. Federico Trillo – Figueroa.

This year the event will be held at Drapers’ Hall, a truly impressive venue.

On this truly special occasion we are pleased to count on Mr. Juan Miguel Villar Mir, Chairman of Grupo Villar Mir and OHL as our Guest of Honour, and we would like to take this opportunity to introduce him as well as the company he represents.

Mr. Villar Mir, 1st Marquis of Villar Mir, is President, Chairman and owner of Grupo Villar Mir, which owns several leading international companies in different sectors, including OHL group. Mr. Villar Mir holds a Doctorate in Civil Engineering and Degrees in Law and Industrial Organisation and has received numerous distinctions throughout his extensive career. He is an Academic Member of the Royal Academy of Engineering and of the Royal Academy of Moral and Political Sciences, as well as Honorary Member of the Royal Academy of Doctors of Spain.

Mr. Juan Miguel Villar Mir, Chairman of Grupo Villar Mir and OHL, will be our Guest of Honour.

He was appointed Vice-President of the Spanish Government for Economic Affairs and Treasury Minister in the first cabinet of the Spanish Monarchy (1975-76) and has also acted as Executive Chairman of several large corporations, such as Altos Hornos de Vizcaya, Hidro-Nitro Española and Empresa Nacional de Celulosas.

As for OHL, the Spanish company is a large international concessions and construction group with more than 100 years of history. It operates in more than 30 countries across 5 continents, being the 31^st largest international contractor and an international reference in the construction of hospitals and railways. In London, the OHL Group, whose majority shareholder is the Villar Mir Group, acquired in late 2014, the historic Old War Office building in a joint venture with the Hinduja Group. This property, a heritage asset of outstanding historical and patrimonial value, will be restored and renovated to accommodate a 5-star hotel and residential homes

The event is an excellent opportunity to network with representatives from Spanish and British companies.

With such a remarkable Guest of Honour, we are positive that attendees will be delighted to listen to Mr. Villar Mir’s insights and exchange impressions with him during the evening.

Please remember that places for this event are limited, so do not forget to book yours in advance to avoid disappointment. For further information on this event and how to submit your booking, please click here.

12/05/2016
CLH WILL RECEIVE THE ANNUAL GOLDEN AWARD 2016

On Thursday 21^st April the Spanish Chamber of Commerce will hold the Annual Golden Award at the Spanish Embassy.

The Annual Golden Award is one of our main corporate events which acknowledges a Spanish company in the UK whose performance in the last year has been outstanding.

On this occasion, the awarded company will be CLH, a leading company in Spain for oil product transportation and storage and one of the largest private companies in its sector at an international level. Mr. José Luis López Silanes, President of the group, will attend the event to receive the award.

The Annual Golden Award, which is held at the Spanish Embassy in London, is a unique opportunity to extend the contact network in the Anglo-Spanish business community.

This event is by invitation only for members of the Spanish Chamber. For further information, about this award and to know more about the activities we organise for our associates, do not miss the opportunity to visit our UPCOMING EVENTS section and our blog.

We are looking forward to seeing all our members there.

23/03/2016
2015 IN REVIEW

The intense year of 2015 is coming to an end and so it is time to wish you all the very best for the coming 2016.

But before that, we could not think of a better way to say goodbye to 2015 than inviting you to our Informal Christmas Party on 8th December at the Dry Martini Bar, at Meliá White House, member of the Chamber. It will be the perfect location to wrap up this year in a good holiday mood. If you have not registered yet, please click here to access the registration form. Hurry up as places are going fast!

It’s worth remembering some of the events that have marked this exciting 2015, so let’s do a short recap;

As always, our first corporate event was the New Year’s Drinks Reception, which was hosted at the Four Seasons Hotel at Park Lane, member of the Chamber. This was the perfect setting to start a year full of networking activities for our members.

Later on, in April, we hosted our Annual Golden Award, one of the highlights of our diary, which acknowledges the significant commercial activity of a Spanish company in the United Kingdom. On this occasion, the awarded company was Codorníu, a Spanish family wine and cava producer.

Mrs. María del Mar Raventós, President of Codorníu, receiving the Annual Golden Award at the Spanish Embassy in London.

Not long after, we held our 128th Annual General Meeting, one of the most important events of our institution which is devoted to providing our members with an open account of the Chamber’s activities and events in order to promote the bilateral relationship between Spain and the United Kingdom. The Guest of Honour, Mr. Luis Gallego, President and CEO of Iberia, shared with the 200 attendees his insights on the airline sector as well as the achievements of the Spanish company over the past 5 years.

Our Guest of Honour, Mr. Luis Gallego, President and CEO of Iberia, during his speech at The Royal Automobile Club.

Aside from our big corporate events, we have organised a wide range of seminars, talks, and informal events, such as the International Wine & Spirits Tasting, which is organised every year by different Chambers of Commerce in London, several editions of the ever successful Elevator Pitch, and an Afternoon Tea to discuss etiquette and protocol, a few events that proved very popular among our members.

As usual, a new Edition of our Graduate European Programme kicked off once more in September. This time, the XVII Edition of the programme welcomed 12 participants who will carry- out work experience at London-based companies over a 6 month period.

Attendees enjoying a traditional afternoon tea at The Bentley London Hotel.

Apart from our regular activities and some new formats, there has been a number of interesting collaborations with different organisations throughout the year.

One of them was the evening talk organised by the Council of Ibero American Chambers in the UK (CIAC), which was attended by Mr. Adolfo Suárez Illana, International President of ONTIER. The event provided an overview on risks and opportunities for foreign investors when entering the Latin American market.

Mr. Adolfo Suárez Illana (third from the left) among the speakers of the CIAC event in March.

We also had the pleasure to support the British Chamber of Commerce in Spain in the organisation of their first London event: the presentation of the Barometer on Climate and Outlook for British Investment in Spain, which counted on the attendance of high-profile speakers.

Our Foreign Trade department has also been bustling with activity throughout the year as we helped companies to enter the British or Spanish market and took part in initiatives to promote bilateral trade relations. To begin with, we were present at the Going Global Live 2015 exhibition to introduce current trade and investment opportunities in Spain and meet with like-minded professionals.

Jesús Agra (R), our Foreign Trade Manager, with Mr. Pablo López (L) from the International Department of A Coruña Chamber of Commerce during one of the trade missions that took place in September.

We have also visited Spain several times to develop and strengthen partnerships with local Chambers of Commerce and regional institutions in order to support companies on their mission to enter the UK market. Among these actions, we would like to highlight the agreements signed with the Girona Chamber of Commerce, Cantabria Chamber of Commerce and ASTUREX, the Regional Development Agency for Asturias.

It is also worth mentioning that our President, Javier Fernández Hidalgo, was in attendance at the ceremony organised by FEDECOM -the association that represents our Chamber of Commerce- and where NH Hotel Group received the 2015 Company of the Year award.

Mr. Javier Fernández Hidalgo, President of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Great Britain (second from the left) attending FEDECOM awards.

And that’s not all. To round off a great year, we would like to make the most of this occasion to highlight the initiatives we have developed to continue connecting people & businesses with the launch of a Private Area for Members. We would also like to thank all the companies that have joined our institution as members and especially Codorníu Raventós, Ernst & Young, Grange Hotels, Konecta UK, Lloyds Bank and Telefonica Digital, new Patrons of the Chamber in this 2015.

As a final remark, we would like to thank all of our members which have made the events over the last year such a success. We are already working on the activities for 2016 and we hope to see you very soon in one of them.

In the meantime, we look forward to seeing you at our Informal Christmas Party on Tuesday 8^th December. Don’t miss the opportunity to join us and end 2015 surrounded by fellow members!

16/11/2015
MEET MR. CARLOS ESPINOSA DE LOS MONTEROS: OUR ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING GUEST OF HONOUR

On Wednesday 26^th June we are holding our 126^th Annual General Meeting, which will take place at the Four Seasons Hotel, in Park Lane. This corporate event is one of the most important activities that the Spanish Chamber organizes during the year and it is attended by leading representatives from a wide range of British and Spanish companies. The event will be presided by H.E. the Ambassador of Spain.

In addition to this, this year elections will be held to appoint new members to the Executive Committee, and therefore members are encourage to participate in order to cast their vote. By clicking here, you will find an overview of last year’s AGM.

Aside from the elections, this year we are pleased to count on Mr. Carlos Espinosa de los Monteros, as the Guest of Honour of this event, and we would like to take this opportunity to introduce him, as well as the Marca España initiative.

Mr. Carlos Espinosa de los Monteros during a speech.

Mr. Espinosa de los Monteros is a renowned commercial expert and state economist and has undertaken several leading roles both in the public and private sector. As an example of the latter, he has been Vice-President of Inditex, one of the world’s largest fashion retailers, since July 2012. He is also an advisor to Acciona S.A

He was previously the President and CEO of Daimler Chrysler Spain, in addition to being the Chief Executive Officer for Mercedes Benz Spain for over 20 years. He has had a remarkable professional career, having held several high-profile positions, including being President of Iberia and Aviaco airlines. He also held the Presidency of González-Byass, the Circle of Entrepreneurs and ANFAC.

In the public sector, he served the Spanish Government as the Spanish Commercial Aggregate in Chicago and as the Vice-President of the National Institute of Industry in the early 1980s. Internationally, Mr. Espinosa was a member of NATO’s Industrial Group for the analysis of European industry. Currently, Mr. Espinosa de los Monteros is also the High Commissioner for Marca España.

Marca España is a project by the Spanish Government designed to highlight and raise the profile of Spain as a country in terms of politics and economics, culture as language, history, gastronomy, sports, businesses, and science. In his role as High Commissioner, Mr. Espinosa oversees the efforts of all public and private departments and organizations which have played, and continue to play, an important role in Spain’s image abroad by coordinating and guiding their efforts, which also includes autonomous communities and local organizations.

With such a remarkable Guest of Honour, we are positive attendees will be delighted to listen to Mr. Espinosa de los Monteros’ insights and exchange impressions with him.

The event is an excellent opportunity to network with representatives from British and Spanish companies.

We are also delighted to announce that several sponsorship opportunities are available, which provide an excellent occasion for those companies interested in getting further exposure at this event. You can find out more by clicking here SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES AGM 2013.

Last but not least, we would like to thank Bodegas Protos for kindly providing the wines for this special event.

Do not forget to book your place for this year’s Annual General Meeting dinner! For further information on this event and how to submit your booking, please click here.

03/06/2013

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