CASTELLÓ. The company Talleres Cortés, founded in 1951 by Juan Bautista Cortés Prades , specializing in ceramic machinery and molds, employs 35 workers at its headquarters located in the town of l’Alcora, plus 14 at its plant in Peru, serving much of the American market. Today, this family business is in the hands of its third generation, with Juan José and Emilio leading a business that is a benchmark in the sector and has made its extensive experience, proximity, professionalism, and daily work its main calling card.
In its imposing headquarters in l’Alcora, spanning 4,000 square meters of construction on a 10,000-square-meter plot, Talleres Cortés still exudes that familiar character instilled by its founder and his three children –Vicente, Juan and Carmen–, a legacy that today is managed by the children of the first two – Emilio and Juan—. They took the reins of this business to establish it as one of the oldest family businesses in the province of Castellón.
Juan José –Juanjo– and Emilio grew up, like all the Cortés family, in the family home above the workshop, which was then located in the city center. The three homes thus became the children’s home of the founder, and our protagonists knew the daily life of the business from a young age. Raised with the sound of machines, milling machines, the dry sound of hammers, they came to be like those bells that mark the passage of time…
-Tell us, what more significant milestones would you highlight from the long history of Talleres Cortés…
Juan José Cortés.- The most important thing that has happened to us over all this time is being able to stay open and work as we are currently working [risas]. It is, without a doubt, an achievement. And I say this because we must have done something right to have reached this point after 70 years, working as we have been, with a staff like the one we have, with a consolidated workforce… it is true that reaching this point is an achievement in itself, within reach of few, but we would not have achieved it had we not worked day by day as we have. It should be emphasized that this year has been a great year and we can say that we are facing the best year in our history.
Emilio Cortés.- I would stay with the pioneering character of our predecessors and an important value that characterizes the company, which has been the interest in continuous improvement and the experience we have brought to the sector. We have managed to consolidate a great team of professionals who help a company move forward, grow, and overcome all obstacles along the way. There are fields such as engineering, mechanics… that you can find relatively easily, but in tooling there are often shortages. It is here that we have reaped great achievements, in forming good teams. In this case, I would not talk about milestones, but about a permanent philosophy of continuing with that entrepreneurial character and interest in providing solutions at every moment over the years.
-What markets do you operate in?
E. C.- We mainly work in the domestic market, although we also have an international presence. It should be noted that we concentrate our exports in Peru, at the plant we have there, which serves all of South America, mainly Argentina, Ecuador, Colombia, Bolivia, among many other countries. We handle the national demand from here. It is true that there are often orders from Turkey, Morocco, etc… keep in mind that we have been exporting for 25 years and, for example, we already served the Maghreb region… but nowadays we are very focused on the domestic market, which is very active and where we are very well known.
-How have they seen the evolution of the sector over time?
J. J. C.- If the ceramic sector has evolved and created new needs, we have always tried to provide solutions. We have always worked hand in hand with customers who have needed us at any time. That is, to new technical challenges, we have provided technical solutions and investments. It is a process of continuous improvement.
E. C.- That's right. And as an example, we have this last year with the pandemic. We made the largest investment in our history in machinery due to the needs that were being presented to us, driven by the momentum set by our clients. The secret here is nothing more than trying to meet those needs that we are obliged to satisfy, and we have always shown that we like to contribute positively. If my clients bet on growth and ask me… I have to be there, alongside them, whether in a large or small format. What we cannot do is tell them what to do based on the machines we have. That's not how things work.
J. J. C.- Moreover, we have always opted for prudence in anticipation of what may come; sometimes things come easily, but other times they become complicated. We work with the necessary prudence to confidently face any contingency; but always hand in hand with our clients. Growing is great, but maintaining and securing your position is the greatest success.
-What can you tell me are the aspects that differentiate Cortés Workshops' products and services from the rest of the market?
E. C.- Seventy years of experience is an important endorsement, but it is not enough if you don't have a good product, which is very specialized; the service and personalized assistance are also very important… we don’t have to explain to our clients what we do or who we are because they know us perfectly. That relationship of many years is our main calling card, and new clients come to us because they know we offer all guarantees and that personalized service and attention, which greatly combines professional and personal relationships. This is a key factor.
J. J. C.- Indeed, Emilio has explained it. And yes, our greatest strength may be the service. Because, otherwise, nowadays, whoever does not have a good product or experience, simply, is not in the market.
-Do you keep clients of a lifetime? Do you expand your portfolio?
E. C.- Indeed, we keep the same clients we have been working with for many years. And, fortunately, new ones are joining them. We have clients who have been with us for several decades and are still here. I reiterate that our greatest value is the highly personalized service we offer, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. And that is key because our clients may need us at any time and we must be ready to assist them. What happens? Well, in the end, a relationship of friendship and full trust is created between clients and our technicians. This is something we give enormous value to.
-How have you been doing throughout this pandemic? Has it greatly affected your operational activities and financial results?
J. J. C.- Well, the truth is, we have only been affected during those two weeks of total closure, as it affected us all. Otherwise, we have worked normally.
E. C.- We practically managed to bill about the same as a year ago, approximately €6 million, of which €1.2 million corresponds to exports. Throughout 2020, we experienced periods of decline, but these were offset by subsequent rises. The last quarter was very good, and that's where everything started to go up. Otherwise, it should be noted that thanks to the personal effort of each employee, we have managed to keep the virus impact very low in the company.
-They talked about training and how much Talleres Cortés has contributed to the sector in this area…
E. C.- You have to train the professionals yourself. In so many years like the ones we have in this business, we have tried everything. What has worked best for us is investing in the technicians we have, continuously training them, and the result is evident.
J. J. C.- We have incorporated very young people into our team during this time, some as young as 16, who have found a job opportunity in this profession. We always emphasize the role of apprentices, which is key for companies like ours.
E. C.- In Talleres Cortés, we have always provided the opportunity to learn a profession, and ultimately, those who once joined us become very good professionals in this sector. We have been, I assure you, a genuine training academy. There is much talk nowadays about vocational education and training, and we believe it is a very interesting factor because, on the one hand, it gives young people the opportunity to secure professional prospects, and on the other hand, over time, it equips companies with qualified personnel, as has happened in our company.
-What is designscortes.com?
E. C.- It is the first online store where you can acquire designs for ceramic molds. Through designscortes.com, a wide catalog of services is offered with exclusive designs, through which purchases can be made and orders received. We have our own design department to offer the best solutions and streamline design and manufacturing processes.