Internationalization Project

Project designation: Individual Project – Internationalization

Project code: NORTE-02-0752-FEDER-042363

Main objective: Reinforce the competitiveness of “PMEs”

Region: Northern Portugal

Benificiary entity: Decorgel – Produtos Alimentares SA

Aproval date: 2019-10-10

Start date: 2018-11-01

End date: 2021-10-31

Total eligible cost: € 234 243,75

Financial EU support: FEDER – € 105 409,69

Objectives, activities and expected results

The objective of this project is to reinforce Decorgel’s position as an exporting company, increasing sales in export markets and opening new markets that fit the company’s philosophy, augmenting the knowledge in terms of research and innovation, allowing it to increase its competitiveness while ensuring business continuity with sustained growth and regional interest.

Thus, Decorgel intends to evolve in terms of quality certifications, with a presence in markets where it can be successful due to the company’s characteristics, not discrediting current customers, but focusing on prospecting new customers and also investing in the company’s visibility, as a technology and innovation company abroad through its presence at fairs and marketing strategies.

These are the objectives in the implementation of the internationalization project:

• National and international recognition of Decorgel as a world technological player in the food industry;
• Promotion of the innovation capacity in the agri-food sector, being at the forefront of what is currently done in the food market, creating trends and making the reputation of Decorgel and the Portuguese industry increase in international markets;
• Strengthening proximity to current customers by closely monitoring their needs and looking for new business opportunities;
• Higher-level quality certification that will improve processes and procedures in order to meet the most demanding industrial requirements in relation to their suppliers;
• Improvement of its IT management system, namely in the control and monitoring of customers, as well as in the modernization of the system and adaptation to the demands of a market that is increasingly oriented towards new technologies;
• Participation in international fairs in its business area that will bring greater recognition in foreign markets and contacts with current and potential customers, allowing it to reinforce its position as an exporting company;
• Participation and structured presence in major events, such as the Sirha event and the New Back Experience in 2019, reinforcing the company’s position in international markets;
• To give Decorgel visibility in international markets through promotion strategies in the most diverse available channels and with the elaboration of a well-structured marketing plan focused on the main markets;
• Significant increase in turnover preparing the company’s long-term sustainability by opening up new customers and markets;
• Global improvement of the company, reinforcing its competitiveness through the growth obtained through new challenges.