By: NATASHA SMITH
AS THE head of the British-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce (BPCC) in the Algarve, Roy Whitehouse has been revolutionising business and paving the way for a more prosperous and enriched economy.
Trends vary throughout Portugal. The BPCC branch in Porto is predominantly industry based, whereas in Lisbon, most BPCC members work in services and banking. The Algarve has a different membership, where many work in tourism and construction, and it makes up around 20 per cent of the BPCC.
Members are given the advantage of an electronic weekly news bulletin which features new legislation and news that affect businesses in Portugal and Britain. The BPCC offers services that members need, including translation and a comprehensive insight into the law as well as VAT recovery on exports, and covers all the necessary requirements of a company.
BPCC is in place as a support system and it strives to facilitate the sustainability of companies and encourage new companies to join in order to enable high quality networking in the world of business. The membership is very diverse and one of the advantages is that many issues encountered can be resolved with the help of other members.
The BPCC in the Algarve was established in the 1960s and currently has between 90 and 100 members in the Algarve but Whitehouse said there is potential for more. “We are currently assessing the needs of current members and what potential members need from us”.
Feedback
To date, most BPCC events have taken place in Lisbon but “we are planning Algarve based events over the next 12 months”, said Whitehouse. These events will endeavour to encourage new members to join and will be a way for different businesses to network and socialise.
He is currently speaking to members to ascertain seminar topics which would be of interest and they are planning to organise power network lunches, where small groups of around 20 people can meet and network.
An Algarve committee is also due to be set up to oversee the organisation and ensure members’ needs are being met. A position for an Algarve representative, which is also planned, will take a large portion of this responsibility on and members will be able to have someone to discuss issues or even opportunities with.
Whitehouse believes that the BPCC is there to fulfil what the members want but he said: “This cannot be a one-way street. We need feedback so we can improve the level of service”.
Despite a strong membership, Whitehouse said he would like to see “existing members making more use of the BPCC”. He added that one idea is to hold the annual general meeting over a weekend and have a golf tournament, seminars and maybe even a dinner and dance to bring members together.
One of the issues that BPCC in the Algarve is striving to overcome is the fact that members are located all over the region and efforts are made to hold events in the centre as much as possible.
Algarve event
An Algarve BPCC get together is due to take place at Browns Sport and Leisure Club in Vilamoura on September 14, at 7pm. There will be live music entertainment and it promises to be a good opportunity to meet new people. Anyone wishing to attend should log on to http://www.bpcc.pt/files/BBQNotificationWebEd.pdf and fill in the form. Reservations with payment should be received by the BPCC before September 12.
When asked what the BPCC’s most important asset was, Whitehouse simply said: “Members. The more members we have, the more we can do”.
For general information, please visit www.bpcc.pt
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