Story of the British Chamber

The British Chamber of Commerce in Spain has been operating for over a century. Founded in Barcelona in 1908 at the initiative of the British Embassy in Spain, it was created with the aim of promoting bilateral trade between the two countries. This remains one of its main functions more than 115 years later. The first formal meeting took place on June 5 of that year, chaired by the British Consul and attended by 34 members, electing Valentine Browne as its first president.

Connecting companies to grow their businesses, preparing reports on bilateral trade or investment, and protecting members interests were and continue to be some of the services offered by the British Chamber of Commerce. As an example, in May 1917, the organization helped establish the first British Bank in Spain, Anglo South American Bank, in Barcelona. That same year, the British Chamber of Commerce opened in in Madrid, reflecting its rapid growth.

After the Civil War and World War II, the British Chamber resumed its activities in February 1946 in Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, and Bilbao with expanded services, such as the launch of The Chamber's Journal, which, in addition to providing valuable information and business opportunities to companies, carried out advocacy work, criticizing, for example, the Franco regime's excessive interventionism in foreign trade and high import tariffs.

In the late 60s, the British Chamber achieved a record number of member companies, reaching over 850. However, the creation of trade departments in British Embassies in the 70s slowed its activity, and it had to reinvent itself with new services for businesses. Thus, the new international Chambers of Commerce began to take shape.

This diversity of new services led the British Chamber to offer a virtual telecommunications centre with telex, fax, and translation services. It also became an official examination centre for nearly 1000 candidates annually. It was also the decade that saw the launch of trade fair visits, where staff and the Governing Council helped overcome the language barrier.

Today, the British Chamber is the only independent Spanish-British business organization, working closely with numerous institutions and the public administration at all three levels. With offices in Barcelona, Madrid, and Malaga, and operations in Bilbao, the British Chamber now has 2024 members, Spanish companies with interests in the United Kingdom and British multinationals operating in Spain.