Catalonia celebrates 25 years of cluster policy

Enric Pedrós, Cluster Manager at FEMAC: The Catalan Cluster of Agricultural Means in Lleida

On Thursday June 8th, the President of the Generalitat, Mr. Carles Puigdemont, invited institutional representatives, entrepreneurs and keynote speakers to celebrate the 25th anniversary of cluster policy in Catalonia.

In his allocution President Puigdemont stressed the disruptive impact that a pioneering cluster policy - started in 1992 - had on the competitiveness of the Catalan economy.

An early leader in cluster policy, Catalonia now counts with 30 robust clusters bringing together more than 2.000 companies, accounting for 300.000 jobs and generating revenues equivalent to 29% of the Catalan GDP. “The Catalan cluster policy was and will remain a benchmark for the world”, President Puigdemont said in his closing remarks.

A long-time supporting partner for the Catalan cluster ecosystem, the European Foundation for Cluster Excellence feels certainly proud to have played its part in such a captivating journey from regional to global competitiveness.

Empowering clusters management in textile and machinery sectors

Last February the CLUSTEM consortium members started their training in Cluster Excellence Management with EFCE. As suggested by the acronym, CLUSTEM aims at empowering CLUSters management and services in TExtile and Machinery sectors. The consortium's philosophy relies on two observations:

• Clusters are vital for the support of the international competitiveness of European SMEs.
• Through collaboration, and the sharing of added-value, clusters are an efficient tool for the economic development of regions.

Two months later, after going through the rollercoaster ride of a demanding program combining case-study based classes and practical exercises in strategy formulation, the managers of the 4 clusters - hailing from Italy, Spain, Turkey and the UK - were successfully awarded in Cluster Excellence Management.

Now back to their respective regions for the implementation phase, the partners will have the opportunity to improve the performances of the companies forming their clusters. We wish them success in this endeavor.

A day-visit to understand the many faces of the Textile & Fashion strategy

On Wednesday April 5th EFCE took the CLUSTEM consortium on a day-visit to check from within how the best-in-class retail and fashion companies are competing. In the morning the agenda of the day brought participants to visit a selection of world-class flagship stores on Barcelona's Paseo de Gracia, while in the afternoon, the group travelled up north to Girona to meet with a fast-growing fast-fashion pure player.

The tour focused on two essentials of the Textile and Fashion value chain:

• How boutiques are thought as customer relationship management tools and how they are organized to maximise client retention and customer lifetime value.
• How logistics hubs are today the bread and butter of the clothing industry, an industry that relies heavily on the quick response model, whether for value brands or for high-end prêt-à-porter.

The Foundation wishes to thank Montse Sanchez and Antonio Rodriguez Pozo from Talentiam as well as Toni Sieso from Logifashion for their hospitality and insightful contribution. The moments spent in their company were highlights of the day.