Gutiérrez Mena Marbles, CuellarStone and Luis Sánchez Marbles, all of them associated with the Andalusian Marble Business Association (EEA), have had to assume the full costs of their participation, which has generated deep discontent in the sector.
AEMA, which has been requesting improvements in institutional support for three years, has made an urgent call to the Andalusian administration to implement subsidy mechanisms similar to those of other communities and countries.
Jose Carlos Yague, representative of Mármoles Gutiérrez Mena, has highlighted the inequality with other autonomous communities in Spain, where “companies enjoy subsidies that cover up to 80% of the costs”, while in Andalusia “they compete at a disadvantage”. In addition, Yagüe mentions that companies from countries such as Türkiye, China, Italy and Brazil They receive strong support from their governments, which allows them to present larger and more striking stands.
For its part, Manuel Sanchez, from Luis Sanchez Marbles, has stressed that the lack of economic incentives slows down the capacity of Andalusian companies to internationalise, highlighting that of the 78 Spanish companies present at Marmomac, only 4 are from Andalusia. “This is an alarming figure and a direct consequence of the lack of aid,” said Sánchez.
Francisco Martinez Cruz, from CuellarStone, has regretted that the costs of participation in a fair such as Marmomac are around 100.000 euros, an unaffordable sum for many small and medium-sized companies in the sector. Despite being grateful for the support of the Chamber of Commerce of Almería to cover some transport and accommodation costs, Martínez stresses that much broader support is needed to compete on equal terms with other international companies.
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