Spain-based Quadpack is to increase its levels of investment in local manufacturing talent and businesses.
Following the success of its joint acquisition of wooden component manufacturer Technotraf in March 2013, cosmetics specialist Quadpack and its holding company Alba & Andrea are now looking for opportunities in Catalonia – the Spanish region that two decades ago was known as ‘Cosmetic Valley’.
The strategic shift is in keeping with a perceived trend for companies to “reshore” their manufacturing closer to their home base – Europe, in the case of Quadpack.
Traditionally Quadpack has sourced in Korea and China.
“Manufacturing or finishing products right here in Catalonia clearly cuts turnaround times, but our commitment goes much further than that,” says Quadpack CEO Tim Eaves.
“We also have a responsibility to the environment and, on a social level, to our community. “A smaller carbon footprint, more jobs and a much-needed boost the local economy,” he says.
Alba & Andrea owner Joaquim Carandell adds: “Technotraf was our first venture into the beauty packaging sector and we are buoyed by its success.
“Our alliance with Quadpack shows a real synergy in our outlook and the expertise we can bring to smaller companies.
“On our part, we offer manufacturing and business know-how, while Quadpack boasts an impressive sales & marketing operation.”
The companies are now looking for “the right manufacturer or service company that’s ready for expansion”, Carandell says.
Specifically, Quadpack and Alba & Andrea are looking for either manufacturers of beauty packaging, or service companies that can process unfinished products imported from outside of Europe.
Services provided might include packaging design, decoration, metallisation, finishing or assembly.
Tim Eaves goes on: “There exists here a pool of skilled local companies that produce first-class products, but lack the investment and infrastructure to grow outside of their limited area.
“This talent was widely recognised 20 years ago when I first came to Spain. The 1990s was the country’s heyday, when everyone was buying cosmetic packaging from Spanish – and particularly Catalonian – manufacturers, before everything moved to China.
“What we aim to do now,” he says, “is recapture the region’s glory days of the ’90s. We want put Catalonia’s Cosmetic Valley back on the map.”
Alba & Andrea and Quadpack are considering a variety of investment types, including acquisitions (coming in as capital partners), financial, technical and/or commercial support, or joint ventures.
