Spanish Chamber of Commerce in the United Kingdom

Tag: Spanish Chamber of Commerce

  • LSE Conferences: “Reinventing Air Travel – Low Cost, High Service”

    Vueling is the second  low cost airline in Europe.  Still, they have built a business model that seems hard to achieve: low rates + quality services.

    Álex Cruz, CEO of Vueling, visited London last week and held a conference about he company he runs and the key points that have lead them to become one of the most popular low cost airlines in Europe. This  lecture  belongs to a series of conferences:  “Strategy and Leadership in Spain” ,  a collaboration between the London School of Economics and the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Great Britain.

    The conference titled “Reinventing Air Travel – Low Cost, High Service” was introduced by Paul Preston, British Historian, Hispanist and Chairman of the Catalan Observatory, LSE. Then Mr Cruz took the audience through the history of airlines, from the beginning of commercial aviation in the 50’s until the era of mass transport started back in the 80’s.  “In just some years flying changed from being only for rich people to be accesible and cheap for everyone”, he pointed out.

    A flight from Barcelona to Ibiza inaugurated Vueling 8 years ago, in 2004. Since then the company has become the second lowest cost airline in Europe, covering 21 routes with 59 aircraft. Mr Cruz described the values of the company as ‘sensatez y rebeldía’, which he translated as ‘reasonableness and rebelliousness’. As the young company it is, Vueling has embraced new technologies and also gained publicity in many innovative ways. Although the predictions for the next years are not good because of the economic situation, the reduced demand in some countries and the high price of fuel, the CEO of Vueling concluded the conference with some optimistic words: “The company will keep challenging itself to achieve continuous profitable growth.”

    About Álex Cruz

    Mr Cruz started his professional career with American Airlines first in Dallas and then in London. Afterwards, he started to develop his own consulting project with Arthur D. Little : his own aviation consulting company becoming a partner with Accenture. After gaining some experience in the consultancy field, he started and managed the growth of Clickair to 26 A320s and 58 Europe-wide routes in 2006.  Finally, in  2009, he successfully merged Clickair with Vueling, one of the main and most important achivements of his career.

  • Afternoon Tea for Patrons

    The Spanish Chamber of Commerce was honoured to have Mr. John Cridland, Director-General of the Confederation of Brithish Indrustry,  as the Guest of Honour for an exclusive Patrons’ Club event at the Meliá White House, member of the Chamber. Our Patrons were invited to enjoy an afternoon tea while listening to Mr. Cridland’s interesting speech about the relationship between British and Spanish markets.

    There was a great expectation among the attendees on what John Cridland had to say about the current economic climate and its impact on UK-based business and European markets. The President of the Spanish Chamber, Mr. Fernando Pérez, introduced Mr. Cridland, who began his speech mentioning an Spanish figure that he claimed to admire greatly: Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, known as “El Cid Campeador”, a Middle Age nobleman and military leader very popular in Spain. As an anecdote, he told the attendees he has been to Spain several times with his family just to follow the steps out where “El Cid” walked by.

    Apart from outlining a brief path  on business relations between GB and Spain, John Cridland also went deeply into the Eurozone crisis, how it is affecting the British market and the perception within British industries of what is being done wrong but also some tips on how to move forward. In regard to this particular issue, he sounded quite optimistic but still realistic enough to show British companies concern and fears about the Eurozone, and mainly about Spain.

     Likewise, John Cridland pointed out the interest of SME’s in the British market and the CBI commitment with these companies when trying to convince government to create a mid-size bond market in the UK.

    Last but not least, there was time for Q&A that turned out into a very interesting discussion between our Patrons, who participated actively asking questions on many different topics, and Mr. Cridland. After this,  the attendees found time to network and enjoy the delicious scones, tea and savory sandwiches courtesy of  the Meliá White House Hotel, our kind sponsors for this Patrons’ Club event.

  • EUGIN Clinic, new Patron of the Chamber

    We would like to welcome EUGIN Clinic as a new Patron of the Spanish Chamber.

    EUGIN Clinic is one of the main specialised Assisted Reproduction centres in Spain. Since 1999, hundreds of women from all over Europe have found the assistance they needed to achieve one of the most important dreams in their lives.

    The legislation controlling Assisted Reproduction in Spain is one of the most complete and progressive in Europe and specifies all of the practises which are allowed. The clinic assures there is total guarantee that all the treatments are protected under this legislation.

    The high success rates of the treatments the EUGIN carries out are the result of methodical work, specialisation and the continuous improvement of its processes, for example by participating in numerous scientific projects.

    For additional information, please visit the website http://www.eugin.co.uk/

  • Introducing Vigo by Vueling

    On May the 23rd , Vigo landed  in London for a few hours to meet representatives from Spanish and British media for a breakfast at the Foreign Press Association.

    British people love Vigo. Or so reveal the numbers: over 150,000 Britons visited the city last year. That is one of the reasons why Vueling has launched a new destination Vigo-London.  A direct flight from Heathrow Airport, with a frequency of three flights a week, enables the discovery of Vigo as a unique and attractive holiday destination, a reference of quality tourism.

    Mr. Abel Caballero, Major of Vigo, was there to talk about this new opportunity for the city what he said is one of the most beautiful hidden spots within Spain. He pointed out the wide range of activities to do in the city from the sunrise to sunset that go from gastronomy and folklore to modern culture, nature and trips to the Cies islands, as an example.

    During the presentation, Abel Caballero was also joined by Ms. Marion Bauer on behalf of Vueling and Ms. Inma Gil, BBC Worldwide journalist who is a “viguesa” settled in London.

                                                       From left to right: Ms. Marion Bauer, Mr. Abel Caballero and Ms. Inma Gil

    After Mr. Caballero’s speech, there was an open Q & A for journalists to find out more about the details of this new route and also about statistics on the number and kind of  tourists visiting Vigo within the last years.

    However, the highlight of the event was the introduction of the city itself through a video that left the attendees  either open-mouthed or whispering about plan to go and visit the galician city. Luckily, and just in case you were not able to attend, we are now providing you with this  short movie to enjoy the wonders of Vigo and its outskirts.

    Now,  with this new Vueling destination straight from Heathrow to Vigo, not only can you go and enjoy this Northern Spanish beautiful city, but also enjoy the amazing connections this route has within Europe.

    [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sh1-GUOeXo]

  • The Importance of a good Communication with Employees

    Sylvia Carrasco, founder of Másclaro, during the Seminar.

    Most experts on organisations, management and leadership, assert that effective internal communications are key for effectiveness in any type of organisation. This might sound quite obvious but, do we apply it our work in a daily basis? Are Internal Communications departments really effective?

    Sylvia Carrasco, founder of Másclaro, Spanish Communications Agency which specialises in Communication solutions and strategies for companies, spoke about this topic last Thursday 17th May in a Seminar organised in collaboration with the Chamber. “A good Communication with employees helps us to improve results not only within the organisation, but also with the clients”, Sylvia said as an introduction to her speech.

    It is true that a large number of studies by both professional management groups and professional communications bodies consistently find that ‘communicating with employees’ is a useful and powerful way of engendering greater ‘engagement’ – the propensity of the employee to want to come to work and want to contribute to the success of the company.

    “The perceived image of the company, which in the end is what makes someone a client, will be much better if there has been previously a good Communication with the employees of the company”, Sylvia pointed out.

    Smart organizations recognise that employees will always talk with/to each other, so it is better to set the agenda and informal discussion points than have them dictated by an uninformed staff.

    What do you think? Is there a good communication with employees in your company? What would you  suggest to improve it?

  • ‘Hispassion’ or the reason why people are attracted to Hispanic culture

    On  9th May  Babylon Magazine, member of the Chamber, held the first edition of  “Hispassion: We love Hispanic Culture” at the H10 London Waterloo Hotel.

    The event brought together a lot of representatives from both British and Spanish companies by giving them the chance to network and also to enjoy some delicious Spanish food (such as an amazing “paella”).  All involved seemed to get on really well, and you could even say the atmosphere had a typical spanish taste: everybody was standing, chatting and laughing… even playing! Yes, they did!

    Every guest was given a sticker when they arrived with a word written either in Spanish or in English. The point was that you had to find your match by looking for the translation of the word you were given. Once you found your match, you both had to strike a pose at the photo call wearing different masks on your face. There was a contest within the game and so, the funniest picture taken won dinner for two at the H10 London Waterloo Hotel.

    Juan Calleja, Babylon’s director gave a speech and talked about Babylon’s aim to keep on improving and expanding their brand further. He also thanked all the attendees and said they are looking forward to hold events similar to Hispassion more often from now on.

    Babylon is a media organisation focused on Hispanic culture. It has different channels  which provide a wide range of contents: from articles devoted to Spanish personalities to didactic tools detailing how to get some guidance on learning Spanish language through their articles.

    The brand was launched in 2008 and ever since they’ve been spreading Hispanic culture around the globe. Up until now, they have presence in almost every country but are based in Spain and the UK since London was their first achievement.

    *If you would like to see the rest of the pictures of the event, click here to access Babylon’s Magazine gallery on Facebook.

    [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5s4H8XI5gA&feature=youtu.be]

  • Tamara Rojo: our 2012 Annual General Meeting Guest of Honour

    On June the 20th we are holding our 125th Annual General Meeting and we would like to take this opportunity to introduce Ms. Tamara Rojo, who will be the Guest of Honour for this event.

    Tamara Rojo began to take dance lessons when she was just 5. We can say without doubt that she had the gift with her from birth. From then onwards, she joined Ballet companies from different countries and kept on developing her remarkable career as a prima ballerina.

    In 1997, after leaving the Scottish National Ballet, Tamara joined the English National Ballet where she was chosen to perform a wide range of main roles and also some were specifically adapted for her. After 3 years within this company, Mrs. Rojo was officially invited to join the Royal Ballet, where she has been working ever since.

    September 2012 is going to be the next achievement for Tamara’s career as she will take over as Artistic Director for the English National Ballet. The English National Ballet is delighted to have her as their new leader and remarked on Tamara’s “worldwide reputation and creative vision to form inspiring collaborations throughout the UK and the world”.

    If you don’t want to miss this great opportunity to share the evening with such an fabulous artist, please do not forget to book your place for the Annual General Meeting dinner. For further information on this event and to submit your booking, please click  here .

    © Charlotte Macmillan

  • Annual Golden Award 2012

    Rafael Senén, Chairman of Mapfre Asistencia, together with Mr. Carles Casajuana, Ambassador of Spain, and Fernando Pérez, President of the Spanish Chamber.

    The Spanish Chamber of Commerce held its Annual Golden Award on April 25 at the Spanish Embassy in London.

    On this occassion, the Chamber has had the pleasure to recognise Mapfre’s track record and achivements in the UK business market thoughout the years.  Mr. Rafael Senén, Chairman of Mapfre Asistencia, received the award on behalf of the company and conveyed his gratitude for this acknowledgement.

    The award was presented by the Spanish Ambassador in the UK,  Mr. Carles Casajuana, who pointed out the relevant role Mapfre has played for furthering  business relations between Spanish and British markets.

    There was a significant number of representative companies from different sectors attending the event, both within British and Spanish markets. The President of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Great Britain, Fernando Pérez Fraile, also showed his congratulations on the award given to the Spanish company.

    Click here to see the pictures of the event.

  • Your opinion counts!

    The Spanish Chamber of Commerce is launching a survey  to know what you think about being a member.
    We would appreciate if you could spend just a few minutes of your time filling it out.

    Click here to access the survey.

    ¡GRACIAS!

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