1. 12 THE COPENHAGEN POST | CPHPOST.DK 5 - 11 June 2015
Closer-to-homeoutsourcinginfashionthankstoSpanishconsultancy
IlabishasalreadyhelpedDanish
clothingcompaniesmove
productionfromAsiatoSpain
PHILIP TEES
I
T IS NO secret that doing
business in Denmark can be
an expensive undertaking.
In March, a Europe-wide com-
parison found that labour costs
in the country are the most ex-
pensive in the EU.
Coming home
IN RECENT years, this has
prompted a large number of
Danish companies to out-
source parts of their business
activities overseas, especially
to Asia. But the tide could be
turning and, in some indus-
tries, businesses are recognising
that it can make financial and
strategic sense to come home,
if not to Denmark, at least to
Europe.
The Spanish businesswom-
an Patricia M Montesinos runs
Ilabis, a consultancy that helps
Danish small and medium-
sized enterprises (SMEs) move
their operations to Spain.
Montesinos has lived and
worked in Denmark for three
and a half years, before which
her career spanned a number
of industries in Spain and Lat-
in America.
Fashion for Spain
MONTESINOS has already
helped Danish companies in
the fashion industry to move
production to Alicante on
Spain’s Costa Blanca. She ex-
plained that there are both
general and industry-specific
advantages to this course of ac-
tion.
“THERE are a number of
advantages to moving your
production to Spain,” she said.
“The cost of doing business
in Asia is rising, making Spanish
production costs competitive.
There are lower cultural barriers
for Danish companies, a similar
business environment, a compa-
rable tax system, local suppliers,
skilled professionals and no time
difference.”
Responsive to trends
THE TEXTILE and footwear
industries in Alicante have
a long and proud tradition,
making for an extremely well
qualified workforce at the dis-
posal of fashion companies that
base their production there.
According to Montesinos, fast-
er delivery is also key. “In Spain
it is possible to work in smaller
volumes and take delivery
much faster than you typically
can with production in China,
for example,” she said.
“This is vital for designers,
who are increasingly working
with smaller collections and
want to be able to respond to
the trends right now.”
Bridging cultures
MONTESINOS sees her role
as being the bridge between
Danish SMEs and potential
Spanish partners. “Although
the business cultures are simi-
lar, there are small differences
that it helps to understand,”
she explained.
“There is a different way
to negotiate in Spain. It takes
a little more time. Whereas
Danes are very direct, Span-
iards might want to have lunch
together in order to build the
relationship.”
Watch this space
MONTESINOS expects more
companies to follow. “The
Spanish government wants to
invest in bringing foreign busi-
ness to the country and there
are lots of synergies for the
many Danish SMEs looking
for a new production strategy,”
she explained.
BUSINESS
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on toll free number
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visit bestwestern.dk
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on toll free number
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visit bestwestern.dk
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Spanish businesswoman Patricia M Montesinos
OUTSOURCING:
• According to a comparison
by DI of 15 European coun-
tries, Denmark was surpassed
only by France and the
Netherlands in terms of jobs
outsourced between 2009
and 2011
• From 2009 to 2011 Dan-
ish companies outsourced
14,000 jobs – 10,000 of
which were in production
• A 2014 study by Roger
Bandick, a lecturer at the
Institute of Economics at
Aarhus University, found
that Danish companies have
more to gain by outsourcing
to high-wage countries than
low-wage countries
• After outsourcing jobs only
2 percent of companies bring
those jobs back to Denmark
(Source: Danmarks Statistik)