Entrepreneurship is encoded in its DNA and the proof is that with only 22 years and fresh from the classrooms of the Escola Superior de Enxeñaría Informática of the UVigo set up Redegal. Jorge Vázquez has shown that it is possible to undertake and succeed without taking the suitcase. From his native Ourensetoday he runs a company that in 2021 billed 7.1 millionwith clients such as Abanca, McCain Foodservice, the Mexican newspaper Milenio, Euskaltel or Coren and which has more ambitions: to continue growing at double digits and to go shopping.
Since Redegal took its first steps in 2004, how has the service portfolio evolved?
We are an engineering and digital marketing agency specialized in the development and generation of online business. With more than 18 years of experience in information technology, we went from developing web projects to ecommerce projects for companies, covering all the short, medium and long-term needs of a brand that wishes to create or grow its business in the net. That is, we carry out consulting, development of projects with web technologies and online platforms, mobile development, presence management in marketplaces, digital marketing services, integrations, cloud computing and innovation. We are a ‘full digital commerce’ company, as we bring together the services of a digital marketing agency and those of a digital development agency, offering personalized cross-cutting solutions and the opportunity to take on a project from its inception to its consolidation in the market.
After a 2021 in which they managed to bill 18.4% more, the next challenge is to make the leap to BME Growth. For what purpose?
Our IPO in the coming months responds to the search for new ways of financing to consolidate our organic growth and open a new way of inorganic growth. That is, via mergers and acquisitions of both companies and business units that interest us and complement us as well as our present and future clients, as well as our future investors. In addition, we believe that this process will also help us both in retaining the talent we have and in attracting new professionals.
We serve customers from countries like Germany and the USA and we are going to expand our business
When will the public offer of sale materialize? What part of the capital will they put on the market?
We are in the pre-market environment, a previous scenario that we believe is appropriate considering the requirement of becoming a listed company. The conditions offered by BME Growth are largely adapted to Redegal’s needs and type of business, so it could play a very relevant role in our growth. But, for now we are in a phase prior to the materialization of the public offer.
So, one of the goals is to star in integrations…
Our plan for the coming years is to continue the path of recent years, with double-digit growth. To achieve this, we need to continue betting on internationalization and trends in electronic commerce and digital marketing, as well as establishing a continuous improvement plan that will help us to do the best job for our clients and give continuity to the business plan. One of our main reasons for future listing on BME Growth is inorganic growth via mergers and acquisitions that will allow us to continue growing at double digits, providing new structures both at company and business unit level.
I believe that in a few years technology will be even more present in our lives and many of the terms that are now beginning to become popular, such as the metaverse, will already be a reality
They operate in Spain, Mexico and the United Kingdom. What are the next goals in the expansion?
Our offices in Spain, Mexico and the United Kingdom serve as a ‘hub’ or connection point with our clients in different countries. Thanks to this geographical distribution and our commitment to telecommuting, we serve clients from different countries, including Germany and the United States. We want to continue expanding our business in Europe, Latin America and the United States and we have potential thanks to our team.
Redegal took its first steps when digital marketing was in its infancy in Spain and tools such as mobile phones bore little resemblance to the smartphones we use today. In addition, then there were few Galicians who bought online. Where is digital marketing evolving?
The technology sector is exciting because it is in constant movement and transformation. In 2004, advanced mobile devices did not yet exist, nor did the main social networks, and electronic commerce was very much in the minority. We knew from the start that in order to grow and help our clients we would have to continuously review the way we do things, organize ourselves and adapt to new services and tools. It is very difficult to make predictions due to the number of changes and variables that the sector is experiencing and due to changes at the economic level. I think that in a few years technology will be even more present in our lives and many of the terms that are now beginning to become popular, such as the metaverse, will already be a reality.
Digital marketing, and particularly electronic commerce, have helped many companies to continue operating in difficult times
How do you see the health of advertising in print media? Will it continue to coexist with the online world?
The key is not to compare online versus offline but to combine both. It is true that the pandemic has had a strong impact on changes in consumer behavior, causing businesses to resize themselves and learn to meet this important demand. Digital marketing, and particularly electronic commerce, have helped many companies to continue operating in difficult times. Although, initially, some companies reduced their advertising budgets and investments, they soon saw the possibilities offered by social networks and e-commerce. In the last two years, we have experienced an unprecedented digitization, a growth that in other circumstances would have taken much longer, but it is also true that the offline channel is presenting a rebound because consumers wanted to return to the physical and tangible. This means that customers are rethinking their strategy: if in the last two years brands have had to focus on ‘digital first’, now they are migrating to strategies where the consumer is the center of the business.
How many workers do they have and what is their profile?
Behind Redegal there is a team of more than 150 people with different profiles, multidisciplinary and with a lot of experience in providing solutions to our clients in all kinds of contexts and sectors. We also have a very experienced management, a team that has been around for many years and who are leaders of the main business units. And in recent months we have incorporated people who solidify the initial foundations for our next IPO. For us, it is essential to meet the criteria of diversity, governance and sustainability, which helps us offer greater value to customers, shareholders and employees.
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