The Society for the Development of Cantabria (SODERCAN), part of the Regional Ministry of Industry, Employment, Innovation and Commerce of the Government of Cantabria, has awarded a total of €219,579 in aid to four associations and export consortia through the "Cooperate to Grow" call for proposals, aimed at promoting business cooperation both nationally and internationally.
The beneficiaries of the 2025 call are the export consortia Santander Global Metal and Santander Fine Food, created with the support of SODERCAN, and the business associations Cantabria Brinda and Cantabria Quesera, promoted by CEOE-Cepyme.
The aim of this aid is to strengthen and support strategic cooperation and voluntary alliances between companies and/or business associations in Cantabria, in order to generate competitive advantages for their members through joint commercial promotion initiatives aimed at facilitating the entry of their products and/or services into new national or international markets.
The “Cooperate to Grow” funding line is targeted at export consortia, economic interest groupings, and business associations from the manufacturing industry sector.
The Minister of Industry and President of SODERCAN, Eduardo Arasti, explained that for small businesses, cooperation is a valuable tool for tackling the challenge of entering new markets and pursuing international expansion, as it enables them to reach critical mass and gain the necessary capabilities to approach the process with greater chances of success and reduced risk.
Internationalisation is a path to growth and development for companies, but it is also a process that entails risks, which are often insurmountable for smaller firms.
For this reason, SODERCAN has played an active role in driving the creation of both clusters and so-called "Cooperation Entities for Internationalisation", also known as Joint Export Units (Unidades Agrupadas de Exportación, or UAEs).
The “Cooperate to Grow” programme is open to commercial companies, economic interest groupings, or business associations that are legally constituted at the time of application and have a joint marketing strategy, with the commitment from member companies to operate collectively in one or more markets outside of Cantabria, sharing risks and costs.
Business associations may apply for this programme provided they are composed of companies with a registered office or workplace in Cantabria, and at least 60% of their members are engaged in economic activity within the manufacturing industrial sector.
The other types of eligible entities must be composed of at least three independent and unrelated companies, each with its registered office or workplace in Cantabria and offering their own products or services. These entities may also include partners based outside of Cantabria, provided such members do not exceed 25% of the total number of companies forming the cooperation entity.
All applicants must present a joint commercial action plan, which should include a description of the participating companies, their products or services, the defined expectations and commercial objectives to be achieved through cooperation in the new markets, as well as strategies identifying target segments, customers, and markets, along with detailed activities and timelines to reach those objectives.
The maximum subsidy intensity applicable to all eligible project expenses can be up to 100% of the total eligible budget, capped at €60,000 per applicant for entities less than five years old; 90% and up to €50,000 for entities between 5 and 10 years old; and 80% and up to €40,000 for those older than 10 years at the time of application.
The call covers expenses related to the creation and launch of the business cooperation entity, personnel costs, financial costs associated with obtaining bank guarantees, general and fixed asset costs linked to the project, specialized technical assistance, tenders, marketing and communication activities, non-formal training, business trips and trade missions, attendance at fairs, inbound trade missions, and brand or trade name registration, among other costs.
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