"We Want to Strengthen the US Market This Year": Interview with Our CEO
The company has spent 10 years in the market selling, renting and converting containers. Econtainers was born a decade ago with the idea of giving shipping containers a second life, a Colombian venture that turns them into sales rooms, offices, restaurants, showrooms, homes and libraries. CEO Andrés Valencia explained the work the company has been doing and its plans for the year, in an interview originally published by the Colombian business daily La República.
How much did you invoice in 2019 and what do you expect in 2020?
We closed 2019 at COP 23 billion as a business group, and for 2020 we estimate and project COP 28 billion, which we will reach by improving our customers' experience. We keep rolling out our differentiated value proposition for each segment.
Which countries are you present in, and where else would you like to go?
We are currently present in Ecuador, Peru, Panama, the United States and Colombia. For 2020 our plan is to go much deeper into the US market.
What are the company's other plans for 2020?
Econtainers is currently part of a holding group. We are committed to offering the best transport logistics and an international freight service. Through freight forwarding we give containers a second life with Tailor Made, our "project to your measure" line, and with the Econtainers Reefer line we have become cold chain experts. For 2020 we want our customers to find a comprehensive range of products and services that covers the logistics chain from start to finish, increases productivity and optimizes costs.
How have these 10 years gone?
Econtainers was born as a project of Colombian entrepreneurs who identified a specific need in the commercialization of containers, given the large number of units piling up in Colombian ports. Today our company is an eco-friendly solution to that problem. We have been in the market for 10 years, dedicated to selling, renting and converting containers.
Who are your main customers?
We currently work with Grupo Éxito, Minerva Foods, Colombina, Constructora Bolívar, Constructora Galias, Prodesa, Alcabama, Colpatria, Sodimac, the United Nations, the Colombian Armed Forces, Continental Gold, Grupo Nutresa, Canacol Energy, Italcol and Terpel, among others. We want to be the main partner of companies in construction, mining and energy, transport, pharmaceuticals and industry.
How do you acquire the containers?
They are acquired through negotiations with international leasing companies, and at the ports an inspection is carried out with the shipping line to confirm they meet every legal and technical requirement.
The environmental impact of containers
According to Andrés Valencia, CEO of Econtainers, "this proposal turns the end of one system's life cycle into the raw material of the next, protecting the planet and setting a great example of sustainability for society, with the highest quality standards in construction, modifying and adapting containers to turn them into sales rooms, offices, restaurants, showrooms, homes, libraries, swimming pools and shopping centers." With these containers, spaces that are innovative in design and comfort are developed on the basis of sustainable, renewable architecture.
Source: La República (in Spanish).