North Yorkshire manufacturer enters Latin American market

North Yorkshire-based manufacturer, Ellis, has its sights set on the Latin American market as it appoints a business development manager for the region.

The cable cleat manufacturer has employed Gabriela Casto-Fontoura, based in Uruguay, to build their presence across Latin America in sectors such as utilities, power generation and offshore.

The author of Doing Business with Latin America, Gabriela was born in Uruguay, educated in both the UK and Uruguay, spent the formative years of her career working in the UK, and has previously helped a number of other British businesses establish export links with the region.

Tony Conroy, export sales director for Ellis, said: “We appointed a local distributor for Brazil in 2008 and have enjoyed considerable success as a result. Latin America is, of course, so much more than one country and Gabriela provides an ideal route into a region that currently boasts some of the world’s strongest economies.”

“When you consider her local knowledge and track record in helping British exporters make the most of the often under-estimated Latin American market; and combine it with the catalogue of export successes we’ve enjoyed as a result of our strategy of employing country specific local distributors or development managers, you’d be right to conclude that we have high hopes for quick growth.”

Having originally started work for Ellis in a consultative role in 2012, Gabriela has already helped identify specialist distributors in Chile, Colombia, Peru and Uruguay, who have subsequently been appointed by Ellis.

“Ellis’ export model is certainly impressive and the work they have done in Brazil over the last four years has helped to open doors a lot more easily than may otherwise have been the case,” said Gabriela.

“I am sure that working together we can deliver yet another success story for this great Yorkshire company.”