Two years after the Law to Strengthen Entrepreneurship came into force in Guatemala, only 40 companies have been registered under the figure of Entrepreneurship Companies, a situation that is partly explained by the lack of incentives provided by the legal framework.
During the first nine months of 2018, the country reported the arrival of three new foreign brand franchises, significantly below the 17 franchises registered in the same period last year.
In the last decade, 2017 was the year with the highest number of franchises, according to a report by the Costa Rican Chamber of Commerce and the National Franchise Center.
With an investment of close to $7 million, El Zapote Brewing Company was inaugurated, a company that will produce and market six types of craft beers in the local market.
The company will have production capacity of 2,500 liters per brewing session. They plan to market the product in supermarkets and local restaurants, in presentations of 20-liter barrels and 12-ounce bottles.
In Nicaragua, a distribution company has announced that it will start selling the Colombian coffee brand Juan Valdez.
"...The company Distribuidora César Guerrero S.A. (Dicegsa) informed El Nuevo Diario that from this month it will start distributing Juan Valdez coffee, a Colombian brand that has positioned itself well in several international markets."
Costa Rican exporters view positively the inclusion of new products to the FTA with Mexico, with the possibility of establishing regional production chains.
Some of the products that will be incorporated into the trade agreement are sugar, iron and steel sheets, gelatin powder, cigarettes, chicken sausages, jellies and fruit pastes. In addition, also agreed was trade in raw materials such as yogurt and powdered sour cream and hydrolyzed vegetable protein.
In Costa Rica, traditional tuna producers are starting to sell their product mixed with pasta, and traditional pasta manufacturers are beginning to sell dishes where they combine pasta with tuna.
An article in Nacion.com reviews how food companies, looking to innovate and increase the variety of their product portfolios, enter markets which used to be exclusive for other types of companies.
HSBC Panama will offer more products and services for its Panamanian customers.
Ernesto Fernandes, president of HSBC Panama, commented that the bank's Panamanian offices will feature the same infrastructure they have in the rest of the world.
"For example, the bank offers its premier customers office space in some branches, which can be used for business meetings in Panama as in the rest of the countries where HSBC operates", reported Prensa.com.
Building capabilities for innovation.
Organization that operates in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama
Phone: (506) 2220 1163
Mexican corporation 'Grupo Bimbo' launched two new breads exclusively for the Panamanian market.
They are completely produced in Panama, and the idea is to market them abroad in the medium term, remarked Claudia Montiel, brand chief at "Grupo Bimbo".
They are "raisin bread and butter bread, two flavors highly demanded in the local market. They were not part of the company's 5.000 product portfolio", reports local newspaper La Estrella.