2023-10-04 09:18:21
The Chamber of Spain, as a collaborator of the Secretary of State for Trade, has launched the Mentoring and Internationalization Support program with the aim of promoting the expansion and consolidation of exporting SMEs, and thus facilitate the opening of new markets or improve positioning in their usual foreign markets.
“In 2022, the foreign sector contributed almost half of Spanish GDP growth, with a contribution of 2.6 percentage points on a GDP increase of 5.5%. Spain has 57,000 companies that export regularly and 190,000 more that do so intermittently, but we cannot stop here, we still have a long way to go, especially in the world of SMEs”, explains José Luis Bonet, president of the Chamber of Spain “In recent years we have made a lot of progress and during the economic crises internationalization has turned out to be a balloon of oxygen for those companies that had taken the step. It is important that we make an effort both from the public institutions and from the business world to intensify the exit of our companies abroad”, says Bonet.
Up to €25,000 to obtain international certificates
Financed by the Next Generation Funds through the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, the Program has two lines of action. The first, which can already be applied for, is that of “International Certification”. Its objective is to support Spanish companies in obtaining certifications for the international marketing of their products or services outside the European Union.
The aid per company is 20,000 euros, out of a maximum budget of 25,000 euros, and the eligible expenses are:
Consultancy associated with certification. Costs of shipping, return and/or destruction of samples. Cost of laboratory tests (in Spain or at destination). Issuance of certification / approval. Cost of conducting audits. Cost of renewal/maintenance of certificates, although they will have priority in terms of support, first year certifications. Translation and legalization of documents.
In addition, the expenses derived from the certification process of already started or completed projects are also liable to be financed, as long as the date of invoice and payment of the items for which the aid is requested is after 1 January 2023.
“By reducing the regulatory risk, the company would access new markets and customers. This is relevant because, although from a geographical perspective Spanish exports have grown in all world markets, the increase has been particularly intense with the closest trading partners, so that the weight of the European Union as a market of destination represents 62.8% of total exports. Diversification is convenient in order to try to distribute the weight of Spanish exports to the markets with the most potential”, emphasizes Julián López-Arenas, Director of Competitiveness of the Chamber of Spain.
To apply for these grants, the company must be considered an SME; exceed one million euros in turnover; have a product, service or own brand and, in the case of applying for voluntary certification outside the EU, be an exporting company. The Chamber of Spain has enabled a website from which you can get all the information and apply for help.
Mentorships to help international expansion
The other line of the program, the application period for which will open in the coming weeks, is that of “International Mentoring”. In a first phase, collaboration between large companies and SMEs is promoted, creating the figure of the international mentor. The mentors are managerial profiles of large companies with foreign activity, who accompany the SME in the redefinition of its international strategy. Upon reaching the second phase, SMEs will be able to receive a grant of 28,000 euros, out of a maximum eligible budget of 35,000, to carry out actions of the international action plan defined with the mentor in five areas:
Managerial training or specialized training of the departments involved in internationalization. Recruitment of additional staff in the international department of PiME. Specialized consultancy for the development of the action plan. International promotion covering the costs of promotion, dissemination and advertising in the markets covered by the action plan. Commercial implementation, considering the carrying out of feasibility studies, legal and tax advice costs necessary for the implementation in the destination.
Beneficiary companies must have SME consideration; to be exporters; have your own product, service or brand; and invoice more than 10 million euros. In the case of SMEs that have participated in public initiation programs for state-level internationalization, the limit will be one million euros.
The maximum duration of the mentoring service is 2 months, and the SME will not be able to execute the action plan until the end of this phase in which the mentor and SME review the company’s internationalization process; its priority markets and customers; as well as the current situation, perspectives and needs. Next, the strategy and analysis of possible investments in internationalization actions will be defined together, in accordance with the five spending blocks of the program. Finally, the company will present the Action Plan to the mentor and they will proceed to make a joint analysis before its validation.
On the other hand, companies that want to collaborate in the program as mentors must send their application for membership to the Mentor Catalog and meet four requirements: be a large company (250 or more employees) , invoice more than 50 million euros, have international activity, and make available to the program 15 hours of management personnel with more than 5 years of experience in the international field. The Chamber of Spain will pre-select the beneficiary SME and make the allocations based on the availability of the mentor from the large company.
The Mentoring and Internationalization Support Program will be open until December 31, 2024, and SMEs will have to submit to the call for grants published by the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in its electronic headquarters. More information on the Web.
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