“Master one challenge and then start on the next”: Constant renewal for Spanish businesses
Belief in yourself, taking the right steps and a good dose of decisiveness are the keys to starting up your own business. This is the philosophy championed by Gerardo Gutiérrez, entrepreneur by vocation and restless by nature. According to the President of Gadea Group Pharmaceuticals, experience can give you a leg up in the business world but it must always go hand-in-hand with innovation.
Gerardo Gutiérrez had a degree in chemical sciences along with 13 years’ experience working for various pharmaceutical firms under his belt when he decided to start up his own project. In 1991 he founded the first company in the Gadea Group. Driven by its commitment to research, technological development, quality and internationalisation, the group has grown to encompass three companies – Crystal Pharma, Gadea Biopharma and Bioraw – which together export more than 92% of their production to some 72 countries worldwide.
The step-by-step approach: haste makes waste
Son of an entrepreneur, Gutiérrez maintains that he who stumbles but does not fall, moves forward. This is precisely how he managed to build Gadea into the company that it is today: “When we started in Castilla y León we were only six people. Now the group employs over 300 staff. You must constantly set yourself little challenges and understand that you have to advance step-by-step, slowly and deliberately. Once you have mastered one challenge, you take on the next.”
One step on the road for the Gadea Group was a recent major investment in its research, development and innovation activities. “The pharmaceutical sector requires significant investment given that it must renew itself constantly and continuously research for new possibilities.” A EUR 4m EIB loan via our partner bank Santander was decisive in the group’s growth and renewal process.
Financing the full circle
Gadea is using the EIB loan to finance its strategy of vertical growth. They are completing the clinical development of active ingredients within Crystal Pharma, while using Gadea Biopharma to develop sterile suspensions (droppers, vials, prefilled syringes). By completing the circle they ensure that their active elements reach the end market.
“We considered different options to finance this major investment. After some analysis, we realised that the conditions on offer from the EIB intermediary, Santander, were suited to our needs.” Gutiérrez described the manner in which his group accessed the loan as “agile, quick and easy.” The Gadea President certifies that “the bank has lots of information about our company, so the process went very fast.” The EIB loan has been a perfect match for the Group’s needs, “all things being equal, we would repeat the experience in the future.”