When Enrique Asencio (85 years old, Madrid) landed in Mexico and was stunned to see something that could never happen in his country at that time. It was 1968 and that year of student revolts around the world also resounded in the North American country. “The first thing that struck me was the manifestation of silencebecause that kind of protest in Spain was unthinkable“, declares from his restaurant El Tapeo on Oslo Street, in the Reforma area, the financial heart of the Mexican capital. However, the fascination of this businessman for the Aztec country had just begun.
ascent arrived at the end of the 1960s to work in the restoration. He landed in the Mexican capital to run the first restaurant that the Basque businessman, José Luis Ruiz Solaguren, would open in what was then known as the Federal District and would become one of the most famous in the city. Public figures such as singer Julio Iglesias and Mexican journalists such as Jacobo Zabludovsky paraded through the entrance of El Parador de José Luis.
In 2014, after a long career in the hospitality industry, Asencio decided to open El Tapeo, importing the model of terraceo madrileño. “I wanted a small tapas thing with a good cuisine, tasty, but simple, without big ‘restaurant’ movements. Simple in terms of attention, but intense in quality and flavor,” he explains.
Between the 1950s and 1970s, a second wave of Spanish migrationwhich followed those who had arrived after the war, came to Mexico in search of opportunities. Jose Antonio Alonso Cortes He crossed the Atlantic at that time. “He came in 1950 and his father was already here, as was his uncle who was a hotelier,” says his son, José Antonio Alonso Labandeira, from a table in his restaurant, Lar Gallego. “His first business was a bar called Bar Chapultepec in the 70s. He also opened the Alfonso bar, which was considered the best restaurant in the historic center. There he met many important people, especially from Televisa and politicians, and actors like [Mario Moreno] Cantinflas“.
“Before it was easier to open a business here,” Alonso complains. “They didn’t complicate us so much with paperwork and it didn’t cost so much money.” The 54-year-old businessman lived until he was 18 in Spain. He says that he started working at Lar Gallego, the restaurant that his father opened with typical food from the autonomy where his family is from, for almost 35 years. Now at the head of the family business, he does not see the same panorama that his father found when he arrived in Mexico.
Accusations that affect an unfavorable outlook
The statements of President of Mexico, Andres Manuel Lopez Obradoron February 9, in which he called for a “pause” in relations between Spain and Mexico, they tightened the diplomatic rope between the two countries. The Spanish government’s response was “surprise” and reminded the Mexican president that Spain is the second largest investor in Mexico. The amount of Spanish capital from 1999 to 2021 it was more than 76,000 million dollarsaccording to figures from the Mexican Ministry of Economy.
“The words of the president have undermined confidence in investment in Mexico“, Explain Ana Gutierrez of Mexican Institute for Competitiveness (IMCO). “Investment in Mexico has been falling since 2019, which tells us that did not fall due to the pandemic, but for previous reasons like a decrease in the perception of legal trust“, Explain.
Gutiérrez, who is the coordinator of Foreign Trade and the Labor Market at IMCO, refers to the cancellation of mega foreign investment projects in the country, such as the New Mexico City Airport. “This statement, which is specifically aimed at the relationship with Spain, may reach the ears of potential Spanish investors who may have doubts about the possibility of coming to Mexico.”
Uncertainty and pandemic
The uncertainty has also been replicated in the world of small and medium-sized companies, such as that of José Antonio Alonso and Enrique Asencio. The disappearance in the Government of López Obrador of resources such as the National Entrepreneur Institute or the Pro Mexico trust, which among other things was responsible for informing and supporting potential foreign investors, has further complicated the picture. “It was definitely a blow to the ease of small and medium-sized entrepreneurs. Businesses that are already established here may be discouraged from reinvesting and expanding,” says Gutiérrez.
In addition to this situation, Mexico has dropped positions in the annual study carried out by the World Bank on most favorable countries for doing business. In the last published report, which is now under review, the country was in the position 54, after losing almost nine positions in three years. Mexico City was at the bottom of the entities where it is easier to undertake and invest.
José Antonio Alonso, owner of Lar Gallego, also points to other factors that have put entrepreneurs in trouble in Mexico: “The economic situation due to pandemic hit us hard, because the Government did not help as in Spain with support such as the ERTE for workers. Here they did not deduct any taxes from us, so we were closed, but we had to pay everything the same, “he laments.
Enrique Asencio, in this half century, has seen come and go governments and presidents. believe that the López Obrador’s statements are “circumstantial”“passenger” and does not think that they influence the perception of Mexicans towards Spanish migrants.
Despite the circumstances
Between the positive aspects that continue to make Mexico an attractive country to invest in is found the size of its market, its proximity to the United States and the signing of the trade agreement with that country and Canada, the T-MEC, as explained Aribel Contreras, coordinator of the Global Business career at the Universidad Iberoamericana. “Without a doubt, the diversity of trade agreements that Mexico has is incomparable with any other country in Latin America.” stands out.
“I think my father would choose Mexico again“, says José Antonio Alonso. “I know several Latin American countries and I think that Mexico is still the best, because there are people and, if there are people, there is business“. However, he recognizes that issues such as insecurity continue to generate uncertainties for foreign entrepreneurs.
At five in the afternoon on a Tuesday, El Tapeo opens its doors to welcome businessmen from the Reforma area. TVE is on the television. Enrique Asencio supervises the tables in detail and talks to his chefs. “The reality of this country is much more intense, much richer, has a tremendous number of possibilities in all aspects, from the most humble to the most stale, passing through the most energetic economically. It is a country with many nuances”, ditch.