Interview with Jesús María Prieto, general manager of BigMat Spain

Yes, it is a formula that has worked successfully in France and Belgium, with which we hope to achieve a resumption of sales and a narrower approach between establishments BigMat and major suppliers who have come to the fair.

BigMat Day is an event promoted by the central purchasing in order to promote a forum for meeting and business among its partners, its suppliers, partners and end customers, in which in addition to strengthen commercial ties between all the parties you can buy at very advantageous conditionsas well as the latest news.

During the BigMat Day there a day exclusively for members and their collaborators, and another which also attend all kinds of clients end members, primarily professional sector of the construction and rehabilitation of housing.

This first edition has been very positive for all parties, more than 3,000 people and 90% of the BigMat partners have gone. The balance has been very positive, so that we are already considering us a series of formulas that enrich and further complement this same format, to thus achieve greater success in successive editions.

What offers a fair of this kind, a 'horizontal exposure', against the traditional fairs?

They are completely different competitions. In our case is a fair completely individual, which only can be accessed by invitation whether you are exhibitor as client and is designed to enhance the trust and closeness with the suppliers. This is the value essential that contributes to other types of meetings. It is of a fair where all the visitors are of the same 'family' and shared objectives and very similar expectations, enabling relations to do business.

As BigMat we prefer to be wary of the possibility that this kind of trends is intermittent, and try to continue working without leaving us influence by this series of forecasts, often thrown on the market concerned.

More than a goal, rehabilitation is a business which currently is developing is to a large extent.

Do ask what measures for the Administration and banking to build?

The construction sector is of capital importance in the current economy of any developed country. In Spain in particular the construction sector has been, and will remain, one of the large engines of the national economy, with a high weight in GDP and in the labour market, as much as transform our current economic model. All indicators show that it will be necessary a regeneration of the sector made a production model and not speculative. As soon as possible take letters on the subject, better. Not It seems logical to keep the engine of the construction and non-stationary try to their conversion. Therefore, as given aid for other sectors, it is necessary to promote the rehabilitation to through soft credits for users, a 'Plan Renove' of the housing that means the renewal of the construction sector and of materials, and involves the incentive to the consumer.

It is necessary that financial institutions and public administrations can help to return to be solvent at the companies in the sector, so that they can maintain in these years of transition. In addition, structural reforms should seek to provide greater productivity and competitiveness at the sector, starting with the streamlining and improvement of the legal security in land management. It is also necessary to reform the system of financing of public administrations, which has been a 'distorting element' prices; strengthen legal certainty in the rental, which today is penalised by lack of guarantees for the owners; bet on a greater professionalization of the companies of the sector and its employees; and lowering the tax burden, especially in social security contributions, this tax burden could be compensated with a rise in VAT on housing.

Most of these companies are first or second generation family business. Therefore, with a capacity to hold very limited before a crisis situation in comparison with the multinationals. It is clear that the system must protect these large companies to avoid you are to send to stop thousands of workers at a stroke. But we must not forget that the current lack of protection of the important business sector comprising SMEs leads to a constant trickle of unemployed which, although less striking, is the source of 80% of current unemployment figures anonymously.

To be productive in the construction sector it has to professionalize and to invest more in training and technological investment. On the other hand in times of crisis, it is necessary to sharpen the wits more and innovate to compete.

In the case of BigMat, it is an international company, with partners in Portugal, France, Belgium and Italy.

Today manufacturers are launching a number of innovations in materials, designs and construction techniques. We as dealers strive to maximize have them present in our warehouses and offer them to the market.

In BigMat, in anticipation of what it was going to happen, we were already time working on measures to mitigate the stagnation and laxity of the housing bubble. The current situation, what has done is reaffirm us in the long term strategy which we had already planned, and that we disowning harder in some approaches.

Rather than sell, we believe that our suppliers is a priority to perform operations without risk ending in unpaid bills. From our logistic platform we ensure payment to all referenced suppliers, as well as service to our partners, who also benefit from better conditions.

Tool hire service has been created as a service to our customers as a business in itself. With this service we provide them with the obtaining of a tool at a timely moment. In addition to the accounting, tax advantages and resources provided by their own service to our client.

With regard to the crisis, it is clear that has date of revocation, the problem is that it is not clearly marked and both the authorities and employers have to work to mark it. Anyway this is not a speed race, it is rather a race of Fund, which is put up and continue running.