Chambers Wales South East, South West and Mid has signed a service-level agreement with a new Spain-based partner, Top Brands Consulting, to provide landing services into the European Union for its members.

Top Brands Consulting’s expertise in tech transfer, including the ability to facilitate the transfer of innovations, technical knowledge, and processes between businesses and institutions, adds strategic value to this collaboration. This approach allows Welsh businesses not only to access new markets but also to improve their competitiveness and accelerate the adoption of technological solutions in the European environment.

What services are included?

Based in Barcelona, Top Brands Consulting is an expert consultancy in high-performance entrepreneurship, international trade, innovation, sales and training. Led by CEO Jaume Ramos and partners including Oriol Garcés, the team will work with the Chamber to support its members, especially those who currently trade within the European Union or plan to do so in the future.

The landing services offered by Top Brands Consulting, in partnership with the Chamber, will include the creation of subsidiaries, e-commerce services, employer of record, fulfilment services, IP management, opening of basic legal entities within the EU, and warehousing and logistics.

As the consultancy is based in Spain, the partnership allows access to member states of the EU, helping to ease trade and increase business with the bloc. Spain has been a member of the European Union since 1986 and is part of the European single market and customs union.

Why is Spain a key market?

In the four quarters to Q2 of 2024, Spain was the UK’s seventh largest trading partner with the total trade in goods and services between the two countries amounting to £63bn.

This included £19.5bn in exports to Spain and £43.5bn in imports from Spain. In Wales specifically, £0.5bn of goods were exported to Spain and £0.7bn of goods were imported.

Cars top the list for goods exported and imported between the UK and Spain by a significant margin, while transportation, financial and other business services rank highly among the top five services exported and imported.

David Peña, International Trade Manager at Chambers Wales South East, South West and Mid, said:

“The EU is a primary export market for Welsh products so we are delighted to sign this agreement to offer services to our members which could improve trading experiences and conditions with markets such as Spain and the wider European Union.

“This partnership could help facilitate market entry into the EU for our members, as well as offer assistance on schemes such as General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) and Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) shipping.

“This is just the first partnership of this kind that we are pursuing this year and we are working with another partner to establish a similar offering in another EU member state to provide additional options and opportunities for our members.”

Jaume Ramos, CEO of Top Brands Consulting, together with his partner and founder Oriol Garcés, added:

“We are thrilled about this collaboration which not only strengthens commercial ties between Wales and Spain but also facilitates Welsh businesses’ access to the European market. At Top Brands Consulting, we are committed to delivering comprehensive solutions that drive growth and competitiveness for our partners, maximising their presence in an international context. This partnership is a significant step towards a more connected and prosperous future for businesses in both countries.”