Companies and Entrepreneurs in the History of Spain

Frontmatter

Chapter 1. The Influence of the Entrepreneur as a determining factor in the History of the Company

Abstract

The entrepreneur is the soul of economic development. For this reason, active policies that promote business culture and entrepreneurship are encouraged. In the university world, work on entrepreneurship has multiplied. This chapter analyses the perceptión great economists had of the entrepeneur, while at the same time it looks at, through various texts, the process of formation of the entrepreneur’s current notion and how a company should function. This knowledge has given rise to an academic discipline, the History of the Company. Therefore, knowing the historiographic development of this subject, at an international as well as at a national level, is essential in order to know how to foster business culture in society, which would generate entrepreneurship and make possible a sustainable economic growth.

Mariano Castro-Valdivia

Chapter 2. Castilian Companies: Between the Medieval Model and Modern Business (Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries)

Abstract

During the late medieval and the early modern period, Castile became one of the most powerful kingdoms. The endogenous economic growth, the expansion of trade and financial activities, and the connection with international networks fostered a propitious environment to do business. Castilians and foreigners understood how convenient the creation of companies was: trade and financial companies were the best way to do business in a context of increasing competition. This chapter aims to explore the bases of these companies, since the establishment up to the liquidation, and will analyse the importance of topics like the corporate and financial structure, the work management, the labour conflicts or failures. We’ll provide an overview about companies in a period of changes and challenges like the expansion through Europe and America.

David Carvajal

Chapter 3. Simón Ruiz: A Great Businessman in Sixteenth-Century Europe

Abstract

The Renaissance was a period of great economic prosperity, partly driven by the development of trade and finances. Major companies such as the German Függer, Welser, Hoechstetter, and the Italian Centurione, Spinola, Doria, Pinello, Grimaldi, Peruzzi, Medici, Strozzi, Bonvisi, Michaeli, and Arnolfini grew rich and contributed to the birth of the “First Global Age”. Spanish companies, comparable to their European counterparts in terms of size and business activity, in how they were run, in their establishing networks worldwide and for their importance, played a key role in this event. This work looks at one of the leading figures therein, Simón Ruiz, and shows how forward-thinking his business management was. The vast number of archives of his to have survived, and which are amongst the finest in Europe, provide a detailed insight into his activities.

Hilario Casado Alonso

Chapter 4. A Great Modern Capitalist: Jakob Fugger

Abstract

This chapter looks into the life of Jakob Fugger (1453–1525), a major German merchant and financier, epitome of the entrepreneur of early emerging capitalism. Stemming from a family of artisans and merchants, Jakob Fugger was the head of a dynasty of financiers who featured prominently in the economic life of Europe of those years. His life unfolded during a turbulent time for Europe, immersed in globalisation (the first round-the-world journey), the Reformation and financing of the election of the German Emperor. Fugger took a hands-on part in all these epoch-making events, through his business interests like mining, international trading and, above all, the financing of kings, popes and emperors. Some regard him as the world’s first millionaire, the richest of his time.

Agustín González Enciso

Chapter 5. Speculation and Collusion in the North of Castile. 1820–1880

Abstract

This chapter studies the possible existence of speculation and collusive practices in the production and commercialization of wheat and flour in the North of Castilla in the mid-nineteenth century. These goods were exported from Santander to Catalonia, Europe and Cuba. Part of the rise in food prices during the agricultural crises was attributed to these practices, mainly in the 1856/1857 crisis. The chapter argues that speculation could not have had harmful effects, but perhaps the opposite. It is also argued that market cartelization was not possible. Instead, the trade policy could have harmed consumers.

Rafael Barquín

Chapter 6. Wine Entrepreneurs in Nineteenth-Century Cádiz: Pedro Lacave Miramont

Abstract

The city of Cádiz played an important role in the wine trade throughout the nineteenth century, not only because of the importance of its port, but also because there were many businessmen who decided to settle in the city to develop their commercial activity in a sector which became increasingly important. This chapter intends to highlight this circumstance, and for this it focuses on the businesses developed by the Lacave family. More specifically, it tells the story of Pedro Lacave Miramont and the commercial activity of his company, Lacave & Echecopar, which managed to position itself as one of the most relevant wine companies of its time in the international markets.

María Vázquez-Fariñas

Chapter 7. The Sociedad Azucarera Antequerana and the Commercialization of Its Products (1890–1906)

Abstract

In Spain, the activity of the industry that produced sugar from beetroot began in 1883. A few years later, in 1890, the Sociedad Azucarera Antequera was founded in the municipality of Antequera, located in the region of Andalusia, with the aim of responding to the growing demand for that product and the agrarian crisis of the end of the century. In 1900–1901 the sugar factory of Azucarera Antequerana added 5.8% of the national production, meaning that it was one of the most important in the country, production that reached consumers through an effective network created by the company to sell sugar.

Mercedes Fernández-Paradas, Francisco José García Ariza

Chapter 8. Merchant Bankers, Banking Houses and Large National Banks. The Case of Jaen Province (1800–1936)

Abstract

During the nineteenth century, private banking activity was developed in Spain by two types of agents: on the one hand, entities constituted under individual form or, on occasion, as collective or limited partnerships, such as bankers, merchant bankers and banking houses; and on the other, those organised in the form of a public limited company, such as banks and credit companies. However, in the province of Jaen, the financial sector did not follow the same consolidation pattern as other areas of the country. During the nineteenth century, in this territory there was no bank in the form of a Company. Therefore the financial needs of the population were covered by private bankers and small family banking houses. The objective of this chapter is to study this peculiar configuration.

María José Vargas-Machuca

Chapter 9. Public Services in Spain: The Role of Water Supply Companies

Abstract

This chapter is a study about private drinking water supply companies in Spain between 1840 and 1936. The first objective is to consider the role they occupied within the Spanish business context. The appearance of these companies was determined by the very nature of the business—a regulated public service—anchored to the structure of the natural monopoly and the administrative concession. The second objective is to analyse the business strategy practised by companies to dominate the market, while describing their main characteristics: terms of concessions, stability and survival over time.

Juan Manuel Matés-Barco

Chapter 10. The Railway Sector in Spain in the Long Term

Abstract

This study addresses how the rail transport system was organised in the long term and the main vicissitudes that it went through in its more than 170 years of continued existence, from 1848 to 2020. The main railway companies responsible for the economic exploitation of the railway network in this period have been the Compañía de los Ferrocarriles del Norte de España (Norte), la Compañía de los Ferrocarriles de Madrid a Zaragoza y Alicante (MZA), for the period of construction and private use of the network, and RENFE, a public company created in 1941, an acronym for the Spanish National Rail Network and which on 1 January 2005 divided the operations executed until then between Adif (Railway Infrastructure Manager) and Renfe operadora.

Miguel Muñoz Rubio, Pedro Pablo Ortúñez Goicolea

Chapter 11. The Pioneers of the Spanish Travel Agency Business Before Mass Tourism

Abstract

This chapter analyses the first Spanish travel agencies within the tourism system that was formed in the first decades of the twentieth century. If we understand modern tourism as an industry, travel agencies began to be an important part of it. Since the end of the nineteenth century, it had been foreign companies that had operated in the Spanish market, but since the beginning of the twentieth century we also noted the appearance of Spanish companies. In this chapter we will focus primarily on two, Viajes Marsans and Viajes Cafranga, analysing their evolution until the early 1950s, that is, the years before the mass tourism boom.

Carlos Larrinaga

Chapter 12. Menorcan Entrepreneurs of Footwear and Technological Innovation: Pons Quintana and Mascaró

Abstract

This chapter presents a historical analysis of two entrepreneurs from the island of Menorca (Balearic Islands). Their relevant role is highlighted and the reduced environment and the commitment to the tourist offer are analyzed. Likewise, it describes the training and education of entrepreneurs, their successes and failures.

Juan Hernández Andreu

Chapter 13. The Path to Success of MAPFRE

Abstract

This chapter explains the success of Mutualidad de la Agrupación de Propietarios de Fincas Rústicas de España (MAPFRE), the leading insurance company in Spain. Founded in 1933, it first developed its business in agricultural accident insurance. The nationalization of this insurance sector led the company to invest in car insurance. It became the leading insurance company in 1983. International expansion followed from 1984 onwards. Excellent management enabled MAPFRE to dominate the non-life insurance market in Latin America. In addition, it expanded to the United States, Canada, Turkey, China, the Philippines and to other European countries such as Italy, Britain, Germany and France. The last big move was the shift from a mutual company to a stock company in 2006.

Leonardo Caruana de las Cagigas

Chapter 14. Spanish Businesses and the Negotiations for Spain’s Entry into the European Economic Community

Abstract

Spain’s entry into the Common Market was a desire of the Spanish society after the death of General Franco. The EEC was identified with democracy and modernity. Spanish businessmen were also in agreement with this position, but they had objections about the way of negotiating this accession. In 1978, the Spanish Ministry for Relations with the European Communities was created to leading the adhesion project. The negotiating team started a pedagogical campaign targeted toward the main economic sectors on the benefits of European integration, and also about required changes that became necessary. The analysis of the dialogue between the negotiating team and businessmen—their arguments and positions—constitutes the basis of this chapter focused on a key moment of the Spanish economic history in the twentieth century.

Jorge Lafuente del Cano

Chapter 15. The Automotive Equipment and Components Industry of Castilla y León in the World Automotive Market: The Lingotes Especiales Group

Abstract

Castilla y León, together with Cataluña, is the main industrial centre of Spain in the automobile sector. The great impulse of this industry in Castilla y León came during the 1960s, when FASA-Renault began mass production. Over time, its automotive equipment and components industry became important and has now reached a significant position, both in the national and global markets. Outstanding companies such as Grupo Antolin, Gestamp or Lingotes Especiales that have become leaders in the European automobile market in their respective segments. This chapter studies the evolution of one of those companies, Lingotes Especiales. His study has revealed a clear example of business success in a sector where it is difficult to compete in costs with the highest quality standards.

Pablo Alonso-Villa, Pedro Pablo Ortúñez-Goicolea

Backmatter