Colombia
WORK IN PROGRESS

• Colombia's trade history begins during the Spanish colonization, but in a rather unpleasant way. The Spanish crown claims a monopoly on all trade in the colonies.

• Direct trade with countries other than Mexico and Panama is prohibited. Goods from Colombia must first be sent to Spain to be transported from there to another country in the West.

• The Spanish crown also decides on the type of goods that may be traded: in the case of Colombia, only gold and a few agricultural products.

• In exchange, Spain exports the majority of the industrial products needed by the Colombian elite, along with enslaved Africans.

• After independence, local entrepreneurs were able to export to global markets other than Spain, causing the tobacco and coffee sectors to reach unprecedented heights. Colombia experienced a coffee boom that catapulted the country into the modern era.

• As a result, railways and communication infrastructure were built, enabling production in other sectors.

• Until the mid-1950s, Colombia pursued a policy of import substitution. Later, both the government and the business community switched to promoting exports, particularly for clothing and other manufactured goods.

• In 1959, Juan Valdez appeared in a full-page advertisement in the New York Times for "Café de Colombia." A campaign by the Colombian Coffee Council with DDB, at the time the most famous advertising agency in the world.

• It was a brilliant move that changed the coffee industry forever. By the end of the century, Nestlé and Starbucks had turned a basic product into a high-value product.

In 1992, the Colombian Ministry of Commerce and the Foreign Trade Bank established an official country promotion agency named Proexport to provide non-financial services to SMEs in the field of export.

In 1998, Proexport's Strategic Export Plan was adopted by all government agencies and the private sector as Colombian state export policy. This was a unique step that had not occurred in any other country up to that point.

In 2005, two new activities were added:

• Promotion of tourism

• Attracting foreign direct investment

As a result, Proexport was renamed ProColombia.

The key success factors of ProColombia include:

• The mentality of the Colombian entrepreneur: an assertive commercial attitude combined with strong production skills.

• A comprehensive, practical, and step-by-step process that guides SMEs from ambition to export.

• Matchmaking events: twice a year, more than 2,000 sellers from Colombia and buyers from around the world meet to do business.