The Riba Pentagon is Riba Mundo Tecnología SA‘s format in which members of management will answer five questions about their work, the market and the company.
The second guest of this first appointment is Jose Piñera Lopez , CFO of Riba Mundo Tecnología SA.
2023 was once again a positive year for turnover. What expectations did you have for this goal?
Jose Piñera Lopez: Indeed, we have once again experienced spectacular growth with 32% compared to the previous year, which confirms the success of our business model. At the macroeconomic level, markets have suffered from tightening financial conditions, which in turn have slowed growth, however, our results have been in line with our expectations. We have achieved year-on-year growth levels of 83% in terms of orders fulfilled and 97% in terms of units sold, which ratifies our leadership position in our core categories as well as highlights our strategic decision to diversify the product categories of our portfolio.
Q1 2024 also follows the previously mentioned positive trend. Do you have any comments on this?
Jose Piñera Lopez: Despite a clear market slowdown, 2024 is off to a positive start for our company, which continues to record double-digit growth. We are expected to maintain this growth trend during 2024, reinforcing our strategies for market positioning, internationalization and diversification of our product portfolio, through collaboration with new partners and the implementation of new projects.
What are the financial strategies adopted to ensure the long-term growth and sustainability of the company?
Jose Piñera Lopez: I don’t like to talk about financial strategy, but rather about company or business strategy. It is essential when defining a financial strategy to understand the exact point where the business is. At Riba Mundo, especially in the last 3 years, we have experienced spectacular growth that has forced us to diversify our financing lines as much as possible so that we could sustain this growth, always considering that the maximum objective was to maximize our results, and understanding at all times the specific needs of the company and the adaptation of each of the lines to its initially intended use. Fundamental in this regard has always been to maintain a healthy balance between the different types of financing.
What are the most important KPIs to keep under control?
Jose Piñera Lopez: If we focus on the financial area due to our business model and the environment in which we operate, I would highlight the following as the most important from the standpoints of liquidity, profitability and debt: Cash-Flow, with special focus on operating cash flow and free cash flow, EBITDA and our Net Financial Position.
What advice would you give to those aspiring to become a CFO or those who are starting their career in the financial sector?
Jose Piñera Lopez: The figure of the CFO is in full evolution, becoming more and more a strategic figure of support for the CEO. The CFO of the future will have a fundamental role in the digital transformation and the definition of sustainability policies of a company, so to all those people who want to carry out this work in the future, I recommend having a solid training not only in financial knowledge and concepts, but also in strategic knowledge and advanced data analysis.
