Last Friday, May 24th, ASBA had the pleasure of traveling to the City Hall of León for a roundtable discussion about business opportunities between Australia and Spain. The event was hosted by ASBA in collaboration with ILDEFE, León’s Local Development Agency and ASBA member, as well as LeónUP, León’s Investment Attraction Center. After a welcome by Victoria Valbuena of LeónUP, the discussion was opened by Graciliano Álvarez, General Director of ILDEFE, and Juan Millán, Vice President and Secretary of ASBA.
Auriol Seaton, Business Development Manager for AUSTRADE, gave a presentation on the benefits of the Australian market and the opportunities it holds for Spanish companies such as, for example, Australia’s global ranking as number one in technological readiness (other impressive statistics can be viewed in its Benchmark Report). Attendees were then fortunate to hear testimonials from both Elena Silvela from Navantia, a Spanish naval company who has been successful in Australia, and Luis Nuñez from Orica, an Australian explosives company that is well-established in Spain, about the challenges and opportunities presented by working cross-culturally. After a Q&A session, everyone was invited to a cocktail and appetizer sponsored by the Escuela Municipal de Hostelería.