“Glass & Glass is a 100% Mexican company that was born in the port of Altamira, Tamaulipas, with the vision of venturing into the glass industry to offer products of the highest quality,” stated Areli Velasco Ramos, Marketing Co-ordinator at Glass & Glass. “We started at the beginning of 2009 with a small finishings area. Later, in 2011, we expanded by manufacturing glass with our first production line.”

Altamira is located in the southern portion of the State of Tamaulipas. Situated along the Gulf of Mexico, Tamaulipas is immediately south of the Rio Grande River and the State of Texas in the United States (US). Ms Velasco noted that the location of the glass manufacturing plant near the American-Mexican border allows the firm to serve customers in Mexico as well as other nations throughout the Western Hemisphere.

In particular, companies like Glass & Glass are able to trade throughout North America through the ‘Tratado entre Mexico, Estados Unidos y Canadá’ (T-MEC). In Canada, this trading agreement is called the ‘Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement’ (CUSMA), whilst in the US, the treaty is known as ‘United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement’ (USMCA). Prior to this agreement, which went into effect on 1 July 2020, Mexico and the two other nations worked together through the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

Prolific portfolio

Glass & Glass has expanded operations several times in the years since its founding.

“We currently work every day on the development and innovation of processing both glass and decoration products,” said Ms Velasco. “We are a responsible company dedicated to the manufacture of glass containers. We have 404 employees.”

She noted that “we have a furnace with a capacity of 120 tonnes with four production lines. In the near term, we will be growing this capacity. For finishings, we have an automatic spray process and Fermac and Tecno5 screen printing machines; both of these machines are Italian-made.”

The company focuses on key parts of the glass container industry. “We have three product lines for the perfumery and cosmetics, liquor and spirits, as well as glassware industries, and we are in the process of developing a fourth product line for the food industry,” explained Ms Velasco.

Producing glass bottles for the spirits industry is an important part of the company’s operations. According to the firm, Glass & Glass manufactures more than 20 types of glass containers for use to bottle wine and liquors.

“We have a variety of clients in the industry, including exclusive bottles for producers of tequila and mezcal,” stated Ms Velasco. “Our customers fill the bottles in Mexico and export them to the United States and Europe.”

Tequila and mezcal are two of the most popular drinks in Mexico, according to a number of sources.

In addition to the bottles used in the spirits industry, products manufactured by Glass & Glass include more than 40 varieties of beverage glasses and glassware as well as more than 50 types of glass bottles for perfumes, among other glass products.

“We attend to the requirements of perfumery clients with exclusive designs, as well as products from our standard line,” Ms Velasco said. “For our product line of glassware, we have products for candles. We also have some products for the food industry for distributors and supermarkets.”

Global approach

“Currently, most of our clients are located in Mexico; however, in recent years, we have had significant growth in other countries,” reported Ms Velasco. “That growth has led Glass & Glass products being sold in the US, Canada and South America.”

“We are staying focused on this growth in these new countries by taking advantage of our strategic geographical position: we are less than 10 km away from the Altamira port,” Ms Velasco remarked. “This allows us to access markets in North, Central and South America.”

Glass & Glass provides a number of services to its clients.

According to a statement from the company, “our team can develop different designs that allow the clients to differentiate themselves from their competitors. We include moulds, manufacturing and decoration as a comprehensive service.” In the area of finishings, Glass & Glass offers its clients “different types of container finishing to generate the attention desired” through a touch of colour or combination of colours.

“Our value offer to the market is the versatility of manufacturing exclusive container designs, allowing their customisation through glass engravings, spray decorations, translucent, metallic, matte and a variety of screen-printing inks,” said Ms Velasco. “This results in a more attractive product to consumers."

“Following the industry trend, this last year we achieved historical changes in turnover and production compared to previous years,” she continued. “A post-pandemic era has definitely been marked for the glass industry, due to multiple changes from consumer habits and the awareness of sustainability in the use and handling of packaging."

“It has also presented opportunities for international trade and opening the doors to Mexico,” added Ms Velasco. “This has helped Glass & Glass with our vision of designing, manufacturing and marketing glass containers with a global approach that meets the expectations of our customers.”

Positive outlook

Glass & Glass anticipates growth in the years ahead. “The outlook for the glass industry in the coming years is very encouraging,” said Ms Velasco. “According to industry reports, a CAGR [Compound Annual Growth Rate] of 4.36% is expected from 2022 to 2029. We recently experienced the IYoG [International Year Of Glass] declared by the United Nations that highlighted the importance of a material that is part of our daily life, strengthening the use of glass as a packaging option in different markets. Our plans remain firm for the short term – to increase the capacity to promptly meet the needs of the market.”

One of the strongest aspects that is propelling growth at Glass & Glass – as well as throughout the glass industry in Mexico – is the recyclability of glass.

“Our products are 100% recyclable, so we do not contribute to the pollution of our planet,” stated Ms Velasco. “The reuse of our own cullet guarantees a glass with high brightness, great transparency, and glass free of impurities. Glass is infinitely recyclable. Therefore, it is the basis of the circular economy.”

Challenges faced by the firm include issues with the supply chain, energy and competitors within the glass industry.

“The increase in prices of raw materials and other supplies such as gas have significantly impacted our costs,” explained Ms Velasco. “The growth in capacity of the competition is also a strong threat. We are working to continue offering service and quality to our customers to be able to meet the current requirements of the market.”