The Andorran company, The Craft Salmon, created in 2016 by entrepreneurs Albert Zabala and Pep Borràs, is the first to establish in Actua’s free space in Barcelona Tech City, following the agreement signed between both entities.
Zabala said,”I’ve heard Actua was providing small businesses the option of having premises in Barcelona. I contacted them, I introduced them our project and they liked it. So very quickly, we had the opportunity to have a physical space and the possibility to exchange with other companies or partners to grow. The other co-founder of The Craft Salmon, Pep Borràs, said “we are a company that imports Norwegian products, such as exclusive smoked salmon, and we distribute it to restaurants and gourmet shops. We have other export projects all over the world with partners we have found.
Judit Hidalgo, director of Andorra Desenvolupament i Inversió (ADI-Actua), recalled that “We signed the agreement with Barcelona Tech City a little more than a month ago and we already have an Andorran company in Pier1 Actua’s space and three or four Andorran companies are also interested to go there”. Hidalgo also reported that “we have noticed, at the same time, a growing interest in technology companies in Barcelona to explore new opportunities offered by the Principality”.
Miquel Martí, general director of Barcelona Tech City, showed his satisfaction for this agreement and said ” it is now important to facilitate our companies to go and test their own projects in Andorra, and at the same time, continue to bring Andorran companies that wish to know more closely Barcelona’s ecosystem and test what they are developing”.
The agreement between Actua and Barcelona Tech City
The collaboration agreement between Actua and Barcelona Tech City (BTC) promotes the exchange of initiatives that encourage and promote digitalization and technological sectors.
The aim of this agreement is for Andorra as a country and Andorran companies to benefit from the opportunities offered by this association for technological development and digitalization, as well as for their internationalisation.
Companies and Andorran start-ups with technological, digitalization and innovation projects can enjoy the benefits of this agreement.
Barcelona Tech City
Barcelona Tech City is a non-profit organisation whose objective is to consolidate and strengthen the city’s technological and digital sector, which has mobilised more than 1,200 million euros in the last 12 months and employs 30,000 professionals, helping to position Barcelona as a reference on the international technological scene. To this end, BTC works alongside entrepreneurs, start-ups, investors, large companies, incubators, accelerators and entrepreneurs, universities, business schools, media and other agents of the ecosystem located in Barcelona.
The association is supported by the Generalitat de Catalunya, Barcelona City Council and partners such as Mobile World Capital Barcelona, CaixaBank, SEAT, ESADE, EPSON, La Vanguardia, LetGo, Airbnb, Ymedia Vizeum, Gas Natural Fenosa and Telefónica Open Future, as well as major brands such as McCann-Ericsson and Rousaud Costas Duran, among others. It represents over 600 companies from the technological and digital sectors in the city.
In 2016 Barcelona Tech City inaugurated Pier01, located in Palau de Mar, to create one of the most important technological hubs in Europe. Pier01 hosts more than 100 companies, among which there are start-ups, companies and initiatives such as Mobile World Capital Barcelona’s mVentures, Antai Venture Builders, Nuclio Venture Builders, BeMobile, Nuclio, Napptilus, Berepublic, Byhours, Geenapp, Ikomobi, Iris, Holaluz, LetGo and Tiendeo, among many others.
