The British Ambassador to Spain, Simon Manley, highlighted the manifold attractions Malaga City and the province as a whole hold for technology-based companies and entrepreneurs. Malaga has not just become a hub for international artists and culture, it has become a centre for R & D and technology, with a steady stream of “digital nomads” arriving from all corners of the world to enjoy the sunshine, beaches, cheaper living costs and more relaxed lifestyle Andalucía is justly famous for. Other parts of the province, including resorts like Marbella, are also seeing an influx of technology-based entrepreneurship of late, based on the strength of Malaga’s growing reputation.
Presenting a Barometer of Hope for the Costa del Sol
Ambassador Manley pointed out how very attractive the city is for British companies at a recent forum on the PTA, a meeting designed to look into the issue of British investment in Spain. He pointed to the city’s recent successes in attracting companies like Stanton Fisher, Sequel, Ebury and ITRS.
“We are the two countries that are growing most in Europe. We should take advantage of this to cooperate with each other and encourage that growth,” the ambassador said in the presentation titled Barometer of the business climate and the prospects of British investment in Spain, which the British Chamber of Commerce has published. British investment in Spain “had an excellent future”, Ambassador Manley stated during his talk.
According to the study, British investment in Spain accounts for 21% of Britain’s total foreign investment. During the past 11 years this investment has grown to 63 billion euros. More than 50% of the British companies already investing in the country plan to increase their investment in Spain, the study stated. Their confidence is based on the positive results up to year end 2014. Two thirds of these companies want to investment more without delay.
Forecasts show that their investment will continue to be made in those sectors and regions in which such British companies already have a significant presence. Seen by sector, these are manufacturing companies and professionals from the scientific, technical, financial, insurance, commerce and repairs sectors. Broken down by region, the increased investment will mainly go to Catalonia and Madrid, but Malaga province will undoubtedly also get its fair share.
Spain’s Strengths and Weaknesses exposed
Derek Langley, the vice president for Andalucía’s British Chamber of Commerce, highlighted that the region has become the fourth most important focus for investment from Britain. Expectations are high; he stated that even more investment will be made in the future. During the period 2009 to 2014, British investment in Andalucía amounted to 382 million euros, the audience learned during the Barometer presentation.
The presentation and report also served to highlight how the British perceive Spain’s business climate. The country’s predominate attractions are education and health services, quality of lifestyle and widespread availability of residential Internet connections. Spain is also a springboard for accessing the Latin American market. While these are perceived to be the country’s strengths, Spain’s weaknesses include rigidity in labour regulation and excessive bureaucracy, too little development of alternative sources of financing new ventures and a lack of market unity.
For anyone from Britain planning to relocate their business and family to Spain this will have been an important report. Last year, more people than ever besieged estate agents at the Costa del Sol for details on holiday homes and permanent residences in traditional property markets like Marbella, Fuengirola, Torremolinos and Estepona. However increasingly, the City of Malaga takes precedence as the “smart city”, where everybody wants to live and work.