2024-05-12 02:15:00
The official car that Adrián Barbón gets into every day, a Citroën C5 That car that takes the Asturian president from here to there is just one of the 4,500 that make up the fleet of the company that Benjamín Alba (father of the current leader) founded in 1987 in Tineo, then focused mainly on the construction sector. In fact, that is the origin of the company’s name, a contraction of “Construction Machinery Rental and Sale.”
The 2008 crisis, lethal to brick-and-mortar activities, forced the company to reconvert. Since then, Alvemaco’s main business has been the rental of light vehicles to companies in all sectors, public administrations – especially regional ones – and private clients. The continuous contact with users is palpable at the company’s headquarters, in Pruvia (Llanera), where employees manage, using headphones with a microphone, the next destination of some of the cars parked in front of the building (the vast majority are white , because this makes it easier for the tenant company to attach signs).
David Alba’s office is a haven of a certain quiet amidst all the hustle and bustle. The large wall next to the meeting table is covered with a huge aerial photograph of the center of Oviedo from the mid-20th century (“Auto Nalón, the previous company that occupied the headquarters, already had it here,” says Alba). And next to the door hangs, resoundingly, a Tineo shield made of iron that his grandfather Valentín forged in his Tineo forge in the 80s. The family keeps their roots very much alive in their town of origin, where they manage the Hotel Palacio de Merás , which dates back to the 16th century. David, the firstborn of the second generation of Alvemaco, speaks with LA NEW ESPAÑA as part of the fortnightly series of interviews that, under the title of “The Relay”, presents the new generations of the main family businesses in Asturias.
–What is the origin of Alvemaco?
–My father started working in my grandfather’s foundry, but he implemented other businesses such as industrial warehouses and the closing of doors and gates. The Alvemaco company as such arose in 1987, due to the need in the area for machinery such as compressors or generating sets. My father started the business with a partner, but he was only there for a few months. Little by little, the business grew and incorporated more items such as cranes, which were imported from Italy and then rented in Asturias and sold throughout Spain. That was a very important step for the company. We opened warehouses in Cangas de Narcea (which have already been sold) and Llanes, and in 1992 we moved the headquarters from Tineo to Pruvia, to be better connected. In the mid-90s we started renting cars, especially to construction companies.
–The construction crisis that began in 2007-2008 was a turning point.
-That’s how it is. Forced largely by the crisis, we made a very important turn in the business and, although the rental of machinery was maintained, we made an effort not to be pigeonholed in construction and we began to give more weight to car rental, because that opened us up. to more sectors. Now flexible leasing is the bulk of our business.
–And they also expanded geographically.
–Indeed, another of the decisions we had to make to access a larger market was to cross Pajares. At the end of the 90s we opened a branch in Santander and in 2015, one in Madrid. We currently work throughout the national territory and, in fact, Asturias already represents less than half of the business.
Marta Rodríguez, Valentín Alba and Benjamín Alba, in the second forge in Tineo, in an image from the 60s. / Yago GonzálezY. Gonzalez
The company
- From machinery to cars. Founded in 1987, Alvemaco was born in Tineo as a construction machinery rental company. It currently focuses on the rental of light vehicles.
- 120 employees. It is the total workforce of the group, including the rental business, the workshops and the Hotel Palacio de Merás.
- 4,500 vehicles. It is the fleet of light vehicles (cars and vans), of which a thousand are hybrids and electric.
- 30,000 euros a year in tolls. It is the company’s total annual expenditure on road tolls throughout Spanish territory.
–During the brick crisis, was the company at risk of disappearing?
–Yes, they were very hard moments. Furthermore, I became CEO in 2011, so everything coincided with the transition period between my father’s management, who retired at the age of 65, and mine.
–Is your father still involved in the business?
–Yes, he is still active, and in fact he holds the position of president. He is a very active person who gets up and goes to bed thinking about the company. We eat together twice a week, either in Tineo or Pruvia, and we talk about the business. But he leaves me complete autonomy. Obviously, the decisions that I believe are most important I always consult with him.
–What is the current situation of the company?
–In the last five years we have doubled our turnover: in the last year we reached 30 million euros, and in 2024 we continue to grow.
–What has this growth been due to?
–Mainly, to leave Asturias. If it were not for the expansion of the business throughout the national territory, it would not have been possible. The regional market is good for what it is, it is limited. Yes, we continue to increase our client portfolio in Asturias, but at a lower rate. One of my missions is the long-term vision, and our strategic plan contemplates the opening of more delegations in the rest of Spain, but we have to wait for the right time to arrive. We also consider the possibility of establishing ourselves in other countries, such as Portugal. However, the automotive sector is experiencing many very complicated changes, and that is why strategic decisions must be analyzed in detail.
–Are they electrifying the vehicle fleet?
–We have about 1,000 hybrid and electric vehicles. Every day they represent a larger percentage, although it is still a minority.
–And do you have any objectives set within a certain period of time?
–It’s what I said before: you have to be very cautious and study each movement well. We are a family business, small and rooted in the territory. We cannot pretend to be visionaries and suddenly have the entire electric fleet. We have to go to the market at the same pace. In fact, we have scrapped some technologies, such as liquefied natural gas (LPG). It was my personal decision, I didn’t see it clearly. And now we will see what happens with hydrogen, it is another question.
Runner, skier and, above all, cyclist
Perhaps some of his colleagues and partners do not know that the full name of the general director of Alvemaco is David Valentín Alba Rodríguez. David was the name of his maternal grandfather and Valentín was the name of his paternal grandfather. The manager is the oldest of three brothers; The others are Benjamín (who inherited his father’s name) and Yolanda. Both are dedicated to other professional activities. After finishing the COU in Tineo and doing his military service in León, David directly began working in the family business in the early 90s, where he did “everything” until reaching maximum responsibility. Married with three daughters, Alba is very athletic, especially fond of running, skiing and, above all, cycling, a sport in which he participates in several events.
–Some businessmen maintain that, in this ecological transition, regulation is going faster than the necessary charging infrastructure.
–Yes, because the cheapest thing would be to have a charger at home and charge at night, at a competitive kilowatt price. If you upload to public servers, it will be much more expensive. And costs are also an important issue. An electric car can cost you twice as much as a gasoline one. And regarding fuel, how many kilometers do you have to drive so that you really save and do not end the useful life of the electric car? Therefore, yes: the electric car still poses a cost problem. Furthermore, who guarantees that the price of electricity will be stable and competitive? Will it allow me to pay off the car even if it is more expensive? I have a plug-in hybrid car and I often think that a gasoline car would be more profitable.
–Do companies demand electric cars to rent?
–At the moment public administrations do it, although most with hybrid cars. Because they also need infrastructure to charge them.
–Given your deep connection with Tineo, do you think it is part of a neglected area of Asturias?
–Yes, and it’s a shame. Between the hotel and the Alvemaco workshops there we have 50 workers, so the lack of communications is a terrible handicap, both in terms of costs and in recruiting personnel. If I had to demand something from the administrations, in addition to the recurring issue of inheritance tax, I would insist on the improvement of the infrastructure of the Southwest. In addition, the Huerna toll is also very expensive for us. Every year we pay 30,000 euros in tolls, since we continually travel throughout Spain.
–How do you see Asturias as a territory to do business?
–A company that wants to grow has to leave Asturias, because the growth capacity here is limited once you reach a certain size, depending on the sector.
Marta Rodríguez, Valentín Alba and Benjamín Alba, in the second forge in Tineo, in an image from the 60s. / LNE
The Tineo family that cooperated in Grandfather Valentín’s foundry
“My father worked for me for 25 years without pay; I owe everything I am to him.” Benjamín Alba Menéndez, founder of Alvemaco, said this phrase in an interview with LA NUEVA ESPAÑA in 2009. There, the 77-year-old businessman from Tintine condensed his devotion as the only son of Valentín Alba, owner of a forging workshop where he spent from building cars to metal structures. Benjamín began collaborating with his father in the ironworks at a very young age and later went to the Basque Country to create his own company. After a few years, he returned to Tineo, where in 1987 he started Alvemaco with her wife, Marta Rodríguez González, originally from Corias (Cangas de Narcea) and died in 2017. With her he had three children: David, Benjamín and Yolanda. Since 2009, the family has managed the Hotel Palacio de Merás, acquired from the Arganza and Pompeyo families. The establishment houses an antiques museum named after Valentín Alba, “El Ferreiro”, with 1,200 original pieces from the workshop.
Subscribe to continue reading
#regional #market #good #companies #grow