First face-to-face meeting of the MobiliseSME consortium takes place in Valencia

On 27-28 April, the European MobiliseSME consortium met for the first time in person after almost two years of working together virtually.

Project partners from Ireland, Serbia, Croatia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Belgium, France, Spain, Italy, Austria, Greece and Montenegro met in Valencia with the aim of sharing experiences and lessons learned, strengthening their collaboration and establishing future actions to further support European companies.

MobiliseSME is a programme funded by the European Commission and coordinated by the Chamber that aims to strengthen the competitiveness of European SMEs and develop the skills of their staff through the temporary mobility of their managers, owners and employees to establish partnerships with other companies abroad.

Through the MobiliseSME programme, shipping and hosting companies have the opportunity to access new markets or consolidate their business in Europe, develop new products or services, conduct joint research or projects and share their networks.

In addition, the mobility can acquire and transfer first-hand knowledge of a subject area or other organisational methods, while developing intercultural and linguistic skills in a business environment.

In parallel, the meeting served to achieve synergies between the project partners, create links and generate an atmosphere of trust that will strengthen the collaboration of the partners.

MobiliseSME partners, or local contact points, offer practical and financial support to companies in finding European partners to collaborate with through the secondment of their staff.

For further information, please contact:

Noelia Sanchez, project manager
mobilisesme@e-camara.com

The Chamber presents its activities to 60 students from IE University


Last Wednesday, April 6th, the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg participated as a speaker in a conference aimed to IE University students at the Thon UE Hotel in Brussels.

Sara Sánchez, business development manager of the Chamber, and Julián Szkatulak, from the commercial department of the company, explained the services offered to Spanish, Luxembourgish and Belgian companies, the organised events, the assistance to entrepreneurs as well as the European programs coordinated from the Chamber. During the presentation, they also chatted with the university students to know their interest and knowledge about exports and imports between Belgium and Spain.

The presentation took place in English and was attended by around 60 IE University students from more than 10 different countries in and outside Europe.

From the Chamber we would like to thank IE University for having counted on our institution for the presentation and the attendees for the interest shown in the presentation.

Trade missions carried out by the Chamber in the first trimester of 2022

During the first three months of the year, the Chamber has carried out several trade missions in the food and beverage sector, supporting the internationalisation of 10 Spanish companies interested in expanding and developing sales of their gourmet products in the Belgian and Luxembourg markets.
Firstly, the Chamber has collaborated with the Catalonia Gourmet cluster, whose objective is to bring the most exclusive taste of Catalonia to the whole world. Together with them, an internationalisation plan has been made in the BeLux for nine companies: Can Bech, Hort del Silenci, Anela Fruits, Sant Aniol, Torrons i Alemany, Molí de Pomerí, Gin Nut, Terra Nostra and Finca la Noguera. Their organised meetings with importers of Spanish or organic products, retailers, restaurants and food hospital and schools distributors have taken place virtually.
At the same time, the Chamber has worked together with Central de Carnes, Norteños Group, one of the Spanish leaders in the sale of meat for the horeca industry. In this case, the presence of the representatives from Central de Carnes at the international food fair Tavola Kortrijk 2022 has been used to organise in-person meetings. The profile of the companies that met Central de Carnes were gourmet butcheries, distributors focused on the foodservice sector and importers specialized in quality meat products.
If you are interested in getting more information about the organisation of a commercial mission for your company, contact our commercial department at info@e-camara.com.

Kick-off meeting of the European Soft Improve project in Brussels

On the 7th and 8th of April took place in Brussels the kick-off meeting of Soft Improve, an Erasmus+ project coordinated by the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg.

The project partners, coming from Estonia, Iceland, France, Germany, Spain and Belgium gathered at the Chamber’s premises with the aim of initiating the project activities and establishing the future actions for its proper implementation.

Soft Improve is a 36-month project and the main motivation behind the project is the conviction that soft skills are the key to unlock potential in young professionals and entrepreneurs. In the context of the rise of artificial intelligence, soft skills have proven to be a crucial asset in terms of employability and entrepreneurial success.

In addition, the meeting served to create synergies between the project partners and to identify the persons responsible for each organisation. The fact that the meeting was held in a face-to-face format also made it possible to create links and generate an atmosphere of trust that will allow the collaboration of the partners to be strengthened.

Via the different activities, the partners aim to:

  • Characterise soft skills, decipher the role they play in improving employability, career and business and assess professionals and entrepreneurs’ needs and expectations of training on soft skills.
  • Specify and develop a methodology blending in-person teaching and distance learning to train employed and unemployed professionals and aspiring and confirmed entrepreneurs on soft skills along with tools to monitor and assess the trainees’ progress in soft skills.
  • Develop a face-to-face training course on soft skills combining theoretical knowledge, coaching, gamification and peer-to-peer feedbacks to be tested in pilot sessions, evaluated and refined.
  • Construct a distance learning platform on soft skills made up of adapted as well as specifically developed contents.
  • Promote a generation of professionals and entrepreneurs well-aware of and well trained on soft skills with the message than soft skills are as important as hard skills, and that soft skills can be improved through learning.

Spanish wine tasting in Brussels

Last Thursday, April 7, the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg organised a wine tasting together with the member company From de Roots, wine and delicatessen importer from the Peninsula.

During the tasting, attendees received information about the three types of wine production and about the differences that exist between wines from different Spanish regions while enjoying five very varied wines: from the most traditional white and red wines, to biodynamic or natural.

Jaume Puigdefabregas and Pedro Fecha, from From de Roots, not only offered a technical analysis of the wines, but also encouraged attendees to share their opinions, interests and ideas. They adapted the presentation to the different levels of knowledge of the attendees, allowing both novices and experts to expand their knowledge and taste for Spanish wine.

Likewise, the attendees got a special pairing for the occasion: charcuterie and cheeses from the Peninsula that enhanced the taste of the different wines.

At the end of the event, attendees received a glass of wine as a souvenir.

Kick-off meeting of the European project START

On the 29th of March took place in Brussels the kick-off meeting of  START – Strategic ParTnership to Improve InternAtionalization skills of SMEs in ReTail sector, project coordinated by the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg.

After a first online consortium meeting, shortly after the attribution of the project, which served to identify the first steps to be followed in the implementation of the project, as well as the persons responsible for the daily management, this second face-to-face meeting in Brussels, organised by the Chamber, has served to motivate the collaboration and create links between the partners.

The main objective was to start the project activities, to identify the different work packages and the partners responsible for each of them in order to achieve the first result: the development of a mobile report (App) on the competences needed by retail SMEs that decide to internationalise, according to representatives of this sector.

START is a 24-month project that aims to promote the internationalisation of SMEs in the retail sector, stimulating economic growth and development. To assist entrepreneurs and professionals in the retail sector (both future and active) in the development of an international strategy for their business, thanks to an adequate training able to guide them in the internationalisation process and its successful implementation.

In addition, the project will seek to:

  • Support the development of the figure of the “internationalisation manager” for SMEs.
  • Train entrepreneurs, start-ups and decision-makers in the sector.
  • Train young people and unemployed people looking for new job opportunities in this sector.
  • Increase the digital literacy of learners to facilitate the distance learning process and to optimise the use of e-commerce technologies to further develop small retail businesses.

We will keep you informed about the evolution of the project!

14/09 First ham cutting workshop in Luxembourg

On September 14th, 2022, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg will organise a first edition of the ham cutting workshop in Luxembourg, in collaboration with The Cortador Academy, the first school in BeNelux to learn how to cut this delicatessen. The workshop, successfully organised already two times in Belgium, will be held under the direction of Master Cortador José Cristóbal Álvarez García, who obtained his renowned diploma at the Spanish school “Escuela Internacional de Cortadores de Jamón”. 

The workshop is open to professionals in the horeca sector and other citizens who wish to deepen their interest in this art. During the day, attendees will be able to study the different types of existing ham and their characteristics as well as the regulations that concern the sector, and will learn, in a theoretical and practical way, the main techniques to professionally plate and slice from the meat to the bone. 

The training will be offered in English, Spanish and French, and will take place at Cité Henri Dunant 10, L-8095 Bertrange (Luxembourg). 

You can get more detailed information about this training in the following link.

If you are interested in participating, please fill out this form. 

In collaboration with:
Diagrama Descripción generada automáticamenteImagen que contiene dibujo, alimentos Descripción generada automáticamente

11/06 2nd Edition doubles paddle tennis tournament in Luxembourg

On 24th September 2022, the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg in collaboration with Letz Make it Padel is organising a second edition of the paddle tennis tournament in pairs that will bring together the expat community in Luxembourg with the aim of promoting networking among its network of contacts.

Each participant will receive a sports T-shirt and will be part of a raffle of Spanish products. After the tournament, participants will be able to enjoy a networking cocktail as well as to attend the trophy ceremony.

You can register via the following link.

Networking meeting among entrepreneurs

Last Thursday 24th of March, the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg organised a networtking meeting among entrepreneurs in Brussels, for Spanish entrepreneurs in Belgium. The event, with more than fifteen participants, was organised in the framework of the EmprendeBelux programme, which aims to support Spaniards who have recently created or are interested in starting an entrepreneurial project in Belgium, and in the framework of the Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs (EYE) programme, which offers transnational exchanges to young entrepreneurs and people who want to start a business.

During the meeting, the Chamber first presented the services they offer, as well as the European projects they coordinate and that could be of interest for the professional activity of the attendees. Then, the participants had the opportunity to present their entrepreneurial projects and exchange experiences. Among them, there were entrepreneurs from the translation, politics, technology, art, and beverages sectors.

If you are a Spanish entrepreneur in Belgium or Luxembourg interested in joining the Chamber’s network of entrepreneurs, please send an email to info@e-camara.com.

Kick-off meeting of the European DGVET project held in Granada

Last 17th and 18th of March took place in Granada the kick-off meeting of DG VET, Erasmus+ project coordinated by the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg.  The aim of the meeting was to initiate the activities of the project and to establish both the lines of work and the future actions for its proper implementation.

In addition, the meeting served to create synergies between the project partners and to identify the persons responsible for each organisation. The fact that the meeting was held in a face-to-face format also made it possible to create links and generate an atmosphere of trust that will allow the collaboration of the partners to be strengthened.

DG VET is a 24-month project which aims to develop innovative training material and methodology, together with an online learning platform to support the development of marketable digital and green skills of NEET youth from rural areas to empower their employability, especially women between 18 and 30 years old.

DG-VET project partners recognize the important contribution of the Digital and Green economy (DaGE) sectors to creating job opportunities for young people living in rural areas.

Furthermore, the project will aim to tackle:

  • The digital divide phenomenon: the gap between those living in rural areas and those living in cities in access to ICT;
  • The skills mismatch between job requirements and workers’ skills within DaGE sectors;
  • The lack of policy engagement in the promotion and implementation of supportive youth-oriented VET programs.

We will keep you informed of the evolution of the project!