Allan Meltzer, Managing Director of Tecadi, has been in the construction industry for over 30 years.
Could you please give us a brief description of your business and what the market is like in your country?
Tecadi was founded in 1985 in San José Costa Rica. We primarily serve the construction industry but have now expanded into the industrial and agricultural markets. We are a distributor of leading machinery brands from all over the world. Our equipment comes from countries such as the United States, Brazil, France, Spain, China, etc.
Concerning the Costa Rican market, it is quite small, we are talking about a country of 5 million people. The economy does not have great growth, but it is stable. Its GDP is based on activities such as agriculture, tourism, services, product manufacturing within the medical industry, etc.
That is very interesting. Could you please tell us about your relationship with Haulotte?
We have been working with Haulotte since 2009. At the time, they had not really expanded to the Latin American market, but then they changed their strategy and opened a branch in Mexico. That’s when we started doing business with them.
We really like the brand and the factory due to the quality of the products as well as the personalised service they offer. We have fulfilled every mutual goal, keeping our leadership position in the market year after year. We maintain a very good relationship with both the commercial and the administrative team.
In your opinion, what are the key factors for a successful business deal?
A successful business deal is accomplished when the transaction value is received throughout the overall distribution chain: all the way from the manufacturer to the distributor and ultimately to the final customer. One of the key factors is giving technical post-sale support to the end user. A machine, either old or new, can fail at any stage regardless of its quality standard. What consumers ultimately want is to maximize their productivity.
Customer satisfaction is reached when solid support from the distributor is available. For example, having assistance when maintenance is required at any stage of the product’s life. This generates a good reputation to both the brand and the distributor, eventually making business grow. Like I said, Costa Rica has a small market, so everything is transmitted by opinion and word of mouth.
Do you have a specific vision for future inventions in the Costa Rican market? What would you expect in terms of new machines and technologies?
From the local market’s point of view, there has been a steady increase in the use of lifting equipment. The biggest concerns today are efficiency and safety. The global trend in Costa Rica is also opting for carbon neutral products. Consumers want more sustainable technologies such as electrical equipment as opposed to combustion equipment. We believe this is where the future of the market will lead.
We expect further product offers with electric motors in order to avoid pollution. Models with lower consumption that reach higher heights and greater ranges than the ones we currently have. I think this is a global trend that concerns everyone in the construction industry.