Variety yields success

Jose Pereira, father of the current company president David Pereira, created the foundations for the successful group of companies when he established the family firm ten years ago. He had spent the previous 30 years producing aquariums and knew the market like the back of his hand. To maintain existing contacts and attract new customers, the group is appearing at all the main trade shows Today the Aquatlantis production plant situated north of Porto manufactures state-of-the-art aquariums in all shapes and sizes. Only the curved front panels are supplied by an outside company. Apart from the bonding operations, which are undertaken manually, production in the Portuguese factory – for example the glass and wood finishing – is largely carried out by robots. To guarantee the optimum quality all aquariums carry the TÜV or GS mark. Last July the company expanded its plant from 4,500 m² to 9,500 m² to increase production capacity still further, and plans are already in hand to add another 2,500 m² in the future. The meticulous glass finishing is performed by robots. Only the curved panels are bought from outside suppliers. In addition to the Aquatlantis production company employing 120 staff, the group also includes the distribution company A.D.M. Distribution based in Cysoing near Lille in northern France. A.D.M. Distribution is chiefly active in France, Italy and Germany. In France, where the company is one of the market leaders, it has succeeded in increasing sales by between seven and ten per cent, in spite of a stagnating aquatics market. One of its major successes was the idea of presenting its aquariums on pedestals. Outside Europe A.D.M. Distribution runs operations in the Middle East and Russia. The aquarium sets are assembled and packed manually and given a final inspection. Other member companies of the group include Perlea, which distributes aquariums for the Portuguese, Spanish and South American markets, and the shopfitting company Pet’s Space. The latter’s main customers include the UK, Spain, France, Italy and Ireland. To maintain contact with existing customers and gain new ones, the group exhibited at all the leading trade shows this year. Following its appearance at Expozoo, the next major events for the company are Zoomark in Bologna, Petindex in Birmingham and Sizoo in Barcelona. The aquarium sets are assembled and packed manually and given a final inspection. maj