The Spanish Federation of Food and Beverage Industries, FIAB, in collaboration with ICEX, It has initiated an ambitious e-commerce program to encourage the external activity of companies in the food and beverage sector and train the teams in the effective management of the appropriate tools in the execution of the international strategy in these distribution channels.
More than 30 companies participate in these days in training sessions aimed at improving the management and knowledge of e-commerce platforms, specifically within the store Food and Wine from Spain, the project developed jointly between ICEX and Amazon and which is present in the marketplaces of Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy, France and Spain, where it has more than two years of consolidated activity.
The international strategy of the food and beverage sector must respond to a comprehensive strategy that considers all possible ways of bringing Spanish products to foreign markets. Until now, the quality, safety and variety of our products have functioned as a claim for the international consumer, an image that has been fostered by the interest in Spanish cuisine by the millions of tourists who visit us every year. “It is time to take advantage of all the opportunities offered by new technologies and boost international activity from a complete approach through the online distribution channel,” says Mauricio García de Quevedo, CEO of FIAB.
The Federation highlights the advantages that this type of e-commerce training programs provide especially for SMEs in the sector, a very beneficial opportunity to approach new consumers and collaborators in the international field at a low cost.
Food and Wine from Spain It is specifically designed to accompany the food and beverage industries to benefit from the potential of electronic commerce. “The positioning of Spanish products in all channels is a priority for FIAB. It is important to highlight the joint work with strategic partners such as ICEX and Amazon, whose project complements the strategy offline of a sector with a great export orientation ”, adds García de Quevedo.
Amazon is the marketplace number one in the world, with more than 304 million active accounts worldwide and an offer of more than 200 million products. Thus, the participating companies will develop a specific plan of penetration in Amazon and will be able to access the catalog of products within the store Food and Wines from Spain. Industry activity at the international level continues to be a pillar of development for the sector and the national economy. In 2018 international sales again exceeded 30,000 million euros (€ 30,470 M), accumulating eleven years of trade balance surplus worth 8,025 million euros.