Although Cauca is one of the epicenters of the public order crisis that Colombia is going through, industry and companies continue to bet on the department. The free zones are the driving force of investment in the department and, in fact, The Cauca Free Trade Zone renewed its qualification in 2022 with an investment commitment of just over $40,000 million.
Another example of the business drive in the region is Hero Motos, one of the largest assemblers of these vehicles in Indiawhich arrived in the department with a production plant in 2014. Mónica Delgado Barreneche, CEO of the company for Colombia, assured that, despite the public order situation in the department, They do not plan to leave the departmentand could even increase production capacity.
In recent weeks there have been attacks against the population in the southwest of the country, near where your plant operates, so are you going to stop operating in this department?
Never. The Hero Motos assembly project goes far beyond what is happening in the region. No company you know of in the area is going to leave this location. We have a commitment to the country, to the region and although we do not have a plant expansion plan, because our capacity is sufficient, we still have space to continue producing. The possibility of leaving the region has never been considered. We are still here.
With the public order situation, why did they settle there?
First, what they wanted was an industrial park, a free zone, and for this they studied several options within Colombia. This place offered us the possibility of having good production and logistics, because it is located near the port of Buenaventura, for the import of raw materials. Besides, Valle del Cauca and Cauca have very good road infrastructure to reach the rest of the regions and departments of Colombia.
With these production advantages that Buenaventura provides, what is the assembly capacity of the plant?
Our installed capacity is 80,000 motorcycles per yearbut we have not yet reached maximum production, so we have space. We are producing between 40,000 and 42,000 motorcycles a year, In other words, we have room to continue growing with the current investment, in a plant that will be 10 years old.
With the public order situation that has affected the region in the history of Colombia, how do you combine public and private actions for the development of the region?
There are some tables where several actors from the industrial park have sat, including us, in addition to the presence of local governments, in order to make plans such as improvements to infrastructure in health and education. During covid-19 we support the Villa Rica hospital, which was improved to provide first-level service. We did that with other actors in the industrial park and others nearby, because there are three of us who are in the region.
How many jobs does this production plant currently generate? How important are operations to the region’s workforce?
Around 90% of the plant’s operators are from the region. There are directly 380 jobs, of which 250 are from Cauca, 90% of the operational staff, accountants, engineers and administrators, and indirect jobs are 1,500.
We are generating jobs and with taxes we help these areas, where we are located, have a better quality of education and health. We also help foundations.
With all the work team, what are the lines that they produce in Villa Rica?
At the production plant we make all Hero models. The motorcycles that you see here in Colombia, from our portfolio, are assembled in Villa Rica, Cauca.
Do you export that production?
We have exports to Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, some Caribbean countries such as Trinidad and Tobago. Also to the Dominican Republic and sometimes we have served some of the Guatemalan market. Let’s say that Hero, as such, supplies the entire Latin American market, but not all motorcycles leave from Colombia, then, in What we are focusing on this year is the production plan, which is guided to supply the existing demand in Latin America.
How much was the investment in the production plant?
The plant had an investment of US$30 million.
How did your sales go last year amid an economic context of high rates and a marked slowdown?
In 2023 the market had a decline, since it came from 820,000 motorcycles in 2022 and fell to about 640,000 last year, an approximate decline of 19% or 20%. What we wanted was to focus on sales and we developed an interesting plan for remodeling and opening points of sale. We achieved 40 openings with brand management, thanks to the new logo, and we remodeled about 25 or 30 establishments.
In May, motorcycles grew 16.18% compared to the same period in 2023. How has Hero fared in the accumulated 2024?
In total we have sold 13,000 motorcycles. In fact, in May, the brand that grew the most was Hero, with an increase of 33% according to Andi.
Of this percentage, how much participation does it represent within the national market?
We have 4.7% of the Colombian market. It has been a challenge, but this year we want to break the 5% floor again, which we had at some point in the past. Our goal, in two years, is to reach 10% and we believe that we will do so with the models that we plan to launch until March of next year.
What are the releases for that period?
We have six launches, which already started with the 200 four valves that came out in June. We are also launching the Hunk 160 four-valve to which people are reacting very well.
How many points of sale does Hero have in Colombia?
We have approximately 200 points and we want to reach the north of the Caribbean coastto places like La Guajira, also to the Llanos Orientales and Santanderes.
