F E AT U RE Global Corporate Relocations CEO Andrew Rosemeyer says Madridsbusiness environment is tough and unique According to Andrew Rosemeyer, CEO of Global Corporate Relocations, there is another benefit to being based in Madrids orbit. Once outside the city, the province has a huge area of 605km, with a massive potential for growth, says Rosemeyer, who also highlights the capacity of the citys international airport, Adolfo Surez MadridBarajas. This handles more than 60 million passengers a year, but has the potential to deal with up to 100 million. CLOSE LATIN LINKS there are many reasons why Madrid home to 10 FIDI Affiliates has become a dominant hub for the industry. HEART OF THE IBERIAN PENINSULAR ANDREW ROSEMEYER, CEO OF GLOBAL CORPORATE RELOCATIONS ANTONIO GONZALEZ, BRANCH MANAGER AT AGS MUDANZAS INTERNACIONALES Madrid has been ranked eighth in the world as the city with the largest presence of multinationals, says Charo lvaro, Director of Communications and Marketing at GilStauffer, a moving company that recently obtained FIDIaccreditation for its Madrid office. It is the fourth-richest city in Europe, after London, Paris and Moscow, and has the highest concentration of official institutions both national and international. The income of the 5,000 largest Spanish companies isgenerated by businesses that have their headquarters in Madrid. Jaime Albertos Gonzlez, International Sales Manager at Mudanzas La Vascongada S.L., adds: Madrid is locatedat the heart of the Iberian Peninsula, and is equidistant to any part of Spain, making it easier to pickupor deliver shipments coming from, or going to, Europe. So overseas moves can be carried out in a very short timeframe. While benefiting from Spains position among the largest EU members, several FIDI Affiliates also leverage the countrys relationships with Latin American nations such as Argentina, Chile and Colombia. We certainly benefit from the good relations and agreements between Spain and Latin America, says Antonio Gonzalez, Branch Manager at AGS Mudanzas Internacionales Espaa Madrid, part of AGSs operations inSpain. As an example, we are part of the Latin American and Caribbean International Movers Association (LACMA) and attend its annual meeting. Here, we get the chance to interact and receive feedback from most of our friends and agents in Latin America. Gil Stauffers lvaro adds: Latin America is like a projection of Spain. The language and historical ties create a flow of communication between the fraternal countries, including in the international moving market. We have a very good understanding [between us] in all senses. NO MARKET FOR THE FAINTHEARTED While Spain is on the mend after the financial crash of the past decade, and the corporate market is healthy, dont assume Madrids international moving world is an easy business environment. Global Corporate Relocations Rosemeyer, a Briton who has lived in Madrid for 32 years, says: The straight answer is that it is tough and unique. Not many get the culture or understand how different Spain is. We lose most of the European business because of cheap, low-quality movers non-FIDI Affiliates as they tend to live off todays pickings rather than invest AGS Mudanzas Internacionales benefits from good relations andagreements between Spain andLatin America A thriving international moving industry has played its part in strengthening Spains economic andcultural links around the world 84 FF291JunJul19 pp82-89 City on the Move Madrid.indd 84 WWW. F I D I . OR G 10/05/2019 16:56