Doing Business in Latin America Event – 26 January

Suffolk companies looking to break into the increasingly lucrative Latin American market will have the chance to hear from Gaby Castro-Fontoura, director of Uruguay-based export consultancy Sunny Sky Solutions, at Suffolk Chamber International’s Doing Business in Latin America event on 26 January at the Ipswich Hotel.

With a total population of 637m (2016 figures), Latin America’s GDP stood at US$ 5 trillion in 2016 and is expected to grow, at a rate faster than many other locations, to over US$ 7 trillion by 2022.

Gaby explains: “I’ve been working nearly seven years as a consultant and have supported over 40 British companies across Latin America. You will already find brands like Twinings Tea, Mackays Jams, Barbour clothes and Fever Tree mixer drinks in countries such as Mexico, Chile, Colombia and Brazil.

“But, more interestingly to me, you will also find British products that most people have never heard of. From cable cleats to pollination bags, from static eliminators to alcohol sensors for breathalysers, from energy blocks for cattle to screw jacks, we have worked with a wide range of manufacturers that have cracked such distant markets.”

Amanda Ankin, operations director of Suffolk Chamber, explains: “Latin America is clearly a key target area for Suffolk businesses looking to expand into in any post-Brexit and free trade environment. We believe that this event, alongside the many others we organise about other overseas markets, will give Suffolk firms the inside track as to how to succeed in both exporting to and importing from this increasingly important region.”

Gaby added: “To me the largest distance these days has to do with perceptions of Latin America in the UK, and a lack of understanding of that region and the opportunities it brings. That’s why I’ll be in Suffolk soon, to bring the real Latin America closer to you, and for you to ask lots of questions and share your experience of doing business in the region. I look forward to seeing you soon!”

Read more information and reserve a space at the Doing Business in Latin America event here.