PGM Automotive, established by several members of the Polish Automotive Group, conducts intensive sales and marketing activities in the countries of Africa and the Middle East. PGM representatives together with local PAIH branches (Polish Investment and Trade Agency) organize webinars for entrepreneurs from Morocco, Senegal, Nigeria and South Africa to familiarize them with the Polish brand and encourage commercial cooperation. The first containers with parts under the PGM AUTOMOTIVE brand left for Africa on October 20.
The PGM AUTOMOTIVE company was established in 2019 on the initiative of five Polish manufacturers of automotive parts associated in the Polish Automotive Group Association: PZL SĘDZISZÓW SA (filters), FA KROSNO SA (gas springs), ZAP SZNAJDER BATTERIEN SA (batteries), TIP TOPOL Sp. z o.o. (air suspensions) and PELMET Sp.j. (elements of the steering system). The composition of the company is open to cooperation with other entities with domestic capital, so that the PGM AUTOMOTIVE offer covers the widest possible spectrum of parts and accessories produced in Poland.
From the beginning, it was emphasized that thanks to the organization of common logistics, marketing, sales and a wide range of high-quality products, the participants of this consortium will make it easier for each other to enter prospective, but also difficult-to-gain markets (e.g. in Africa or the Middle East).
“PGM, as the only automotive organization so far, has successfully taken up the topic of entering foreign markets by export consortia promoted by the Polish Investment and Trade Agency. A trading company established by members of PGM representing several entities of the association successfully enters the promising markets of Africa. From the point of view of the Agency, it is much easier and more efficient to serve a client with a wide offer, representing many producers, because he often arouses more interest from foreign partners than each of the entrepreneurs individually. It is easier to arrange B2B conversations and they run more efficiently. PGM initiatives are an example of effective action that we support and promote as PAIH ”- comments Grzegorz Gałczyński, Strategic Industries Manager, PAIH Entrepreneur Service Center.
After the successful presence of PGM AUTOMOTIVE at the EQUIP AUTO fair in Algeria in March this year, sales activities were slowed down by the coronavirus pandemic. Therefore, the company started to organize webinars for entrepreneurs from Africa, which are a way to introduce them to the new European brand, present the offer and the benefits of cooperation with this export consortium of Polish producers. So far, 5 such meetings have been organized, which gathered a total of over 100 participants – local importers and distributors from South Africa, Nigeria, Morocco, Algeria, Senegal and the Ivory Coast. The meetings were full of discussions on the PGM AUTOMOTIVE offer, its adaptation to the needs of African markets, logistics issues and competitive advantages. They were conducted in English and French.
Most of the webinars so far have been organized with the support of the Foreign Trade Offices of the Polish Investment and Trade Agency (PAIH).
“PAIH office employees helped us by attracting valuable participants to these meetings, sometimes using relations with local entrepreneurs or inviting those who would have problems attending an online meeting to their offices. They also drew our attention to certain intercultural issues that were not obvious to us, such as the use of a map of Africa in our presentation, containing the course of borders not recognized in the country for which we organized the meeting. If we hadn’t caught this error before the webinar, we might not have finished our business talks, ”says Bartosz Mielecki, President of the Management Board of PGM AUTOMOTIVE Sp. z o.o.
PGM AUTOMOTIVE representatives emphasize that the model of joint sales and logistics organization as well as broadly understood business cooperation between manufacturers of parts is very positively received by the company’s contractors. Thanks to business talks – on October 20, 2020, the Polish company sent two large containers with air suspensions to Saudi Arabia, and a few days ago, the production of a container for filters and pneumatic suspensions to Algeria was also started. A contract for batteries to Senegal is also at the final stage.
“PGM AUTOMOTIVE’s activity in Africa and the Middle East is growing month by month. In the era of a pandemic, the use of videoconferences is the best way to familiarize potential business partners with what the Polish automotive industry offers at a low cost. During the online meetings, we conducted many constructive discussions that have already translated into specific inquiries. At the moment, we are focusing mainly on the promotion of parts for trucks and buses, but the PGM AUTOMOTIVE offer is of course much more. In the coming months, we intend to continue these activities to show our partners from Africa that Poland is a safe and stable direction in the context of the development of their companies ”- summarizes Bartosz Mielecki.
