Africa has always peaked our interest, held our fascination and attracted our attention in a myriad of ways but, until recently, the notion of the second largest continent in the world as a place to reliably introduce and grow business has not received serious consideration by many in the international business community. This traditional view is quickly changing: statistics from The World Bank, The International Monetary Fund and The Economist Magazine confirm that Africa is now home to six of the ten fastest growing economies in the world and projections indicate growth at between five and six percent per year over the next two years. And, of the 50 economies making the most improvement in business regulation for domestic firms since 2005, 17 are in Sub-Saharan Africa. Of course Xypex, in continuing its momentum internationally, boldly ventured into Africa as early as 1990 using its own distinct brand of business development to establish an initial foothold on the continent via Ghana. Today, thanks to the diligent efforts of Xypex U.K, Chris Miller – Xypex’s Director of International Development, and an ever-widening distributor base, Xypex is now an omni-present force in concrete waterproofing and protection in Africa’s Sub-Saharan countries, with representation extending from Ethiopia to South Africa. Given this growth and the current business optimism throughout Africa, the timing was perfect for our African Conference. The Xypex African Conference February 2013 – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Last month, Xypex gathered together 25 key people from the Xypex African family of managers and distributors to meet and exchange information in Addis Ababa. It was a milestone for the company. In his introductory video, Xypex President, D’Arcy Mainwaring designated Africa as a “high priority region” stating that the company sales in Africa had grown by over 25% last year, the overall region was continuing to gain strength, and that similar future growth for Xypex is anticipated. D’Arcy’s message paved the way for a series of informative and encouraging meetings and discussions. Chris Miller directed up-to-date discussions on the approach, timing and implementation of the new Xypex Growth Strategy. Matthew Fidler, who joined Adam Trow of Xypex U.K. as Regional Manager for Africa in 2012, spoke not only about the company’s much-expanded presence, but the fact that significant projects in our key segments had also been secured in these countries. Jim Caruth’s two technical presentations included “Evaluating the Competition” and “An Introduction to Ready Mixed Concrete and Xypex Admix Project Considerations”. The Xypex Award of Excellence was given to Bruk Berhanu of Ethiopia and Charles Opam of Ghana for their outstanding performances in 2012. An enthusiastic ‘thank-you’ goes to both Bruk and Xypex U.K. who proved to be the perfect hosts for a conference that Chris Miller summarized as “remarkable - a productive and enjoyable interaction of colleagues with a shared interest and optimism about the future growth of both Xypex and Africa.”
Posted on: Mon, 08 Sep 2014 17:41:01 +0000