Let's go to Mexico with Anyong | Waves Odyssey

暗涌Waves·August 22, 2024

Join us.

Call for Participants | Waves Editorial Team

For China's venture capital and startup circles looking abroad, Latin America was once a more distant corner than Africa — a lost world nearly forgotten. Mexico, one of the region's largest economies, saw three decades of rapid growth (1950–1981) come to a sudden halt with the debt crisis, effectively ending Latin America's second "golden age" of economic expansion. Despite signing NAFTA in 1994, the country remained trapped in a prisoner's dilemma for years.

But now, this nation of roughly 130 million people is drawing increasing attention. As we noted in our article A Globalization Guide for Chinese Founders: "Mexico today is where China was around 2014 or 2015."

Following China's developmental trajectory, Mexico's industries will likely evolve from simple to complex: beginning with e-commerce, consumer retail, and "infrastructure" for the new economy (especially fintech and logistics), then moving to SaaS digitization, and finally transitioning to hard tech requiring deep technical expertise.

Indeed, Mexico's e-commerce market is currently in a boom phase. According to Statista, Mexico's e-commerce sales grew 25.1% in 2023, making it the fastest-growing e-commerce market globally. While Latin America's online retail revenue still trails Asia, the US, and Europe, the region boasts nearly 300 million digital shoppers. In 2023, Latin America's online retail sales were estimated at $272 billion, with Brazil and Mexico each accounting for nearly 30%.

Mexico's e-commerce had long developed slowly, with only Amazon and Mercado Libre serving the most premium customers. Starting in 2021, Shein and Temu became two catfish, rapidly driving up e-commerce penetration. Mercado Libre's Q2 earnings this year showed GMV reaching $12.6 billion, revenue up 42% year-over-year to $5.1 billion, and net profit surging 103% to $531 million.

Fintech, logistics, and supporting infrastructure are also rising fast. Just recently, Mexican unicorn Stori closed a $212 million funding round, while logistics company iMile secured a T1 small-package customs clearance license from the Mexican government.

Making money in Mexico sounds straightforward enough. A supply chain entrepreneur told us about several young guys from Taishan and Shanwei who opened over 50 chain supermarkets in Mexico selling beauty products, toys, and household goods — they rake in tens of millions annually by understanding the market and operating at scale.

But in Mexico, chasing short-term versus long-term gains makes all the difference.

Mexico has seen several brief waves of enthusiasm: First, around 2010, numerous companies entered Mexico's mining sector with high initial profits, but environmental damage led to government restrictions after 2013, causing many to lose money. Second, during the P2P lending craze, over 300 Chinese companies came to Mexico, yet most were forced out within two to three years due to legal and compliance issues. Third, during the pandemic, mask profiteering created a frenzy of supply, but the market quickly saturated and losses followed.

Only companies with a long-term orientation eventually see the clouds part. Huawei lost money in Mexico for 11 years before turning profitable in 2010; ZTE also took over a decade to become profitable.

This is our rough understanding of Mexico. What is the real Mexico like? Waves wants to invite you to find out together. Here are the specifics:

Who We're Looking For

  • Entrepreneurs and frontline practitioners interested in Mexico's internet technology and automotive manufacturing supply chains

  • Corporate executives, investment professionals, and overseas operators with Latin American expansion plans

  • Enterprises and institutional professionals looking to enter Mexico's emerging market based on global supply chain positioning and market demand, seeking to understand policies and connect with industry and VC resources

  • And anyone else willing to join Waves on a deep exploration of Mexico!

Our Rough Itinerary

  • October 12, 2024: Depart from domestic airport to Mexico City

  • October 13–17: Mexico City — study tours, seminars, and nearby excursions

  • October 18–20: Travel from Mexico City to Monterrey — study tours, seminars, and nearby excursions

  • October 21–28 (optional): Return to Mexico City to participate in MEXICO TECH WEEK 2024

For specific itinerary details (company visits, salons, breakfast meetings, cocktail receptions), themes, speakers, and excursions, scan the QR code at the end to contact Waves.

What You'll Gain

This inaugural "Waves Odyssey" trip spans roughly 10 days, including approximately: 5 company visits, 7 Waves afternoon tea salons, 1 breakfast sharing session, 2 cocktail receptions, and 2 cultural excursions. Throughout, we'll provide: (1) curated introductions to key people; (2) precisely designed content. A high-value, high-conversion "package" for participants, including but not limited to:

  • Meeting veteran entrepreneurs in Mexican logistics, e-commerce, and fintech — a one-stop guide to investment and startup methodologies from 0 to 1

  • High-level government-business dialogues with Mexican government bodies, industry organizations, and academic institutions, decoding how to survive complex trade policies

  • Exchanges with leading automotive supply chain players who have been rooted in Mexico for years, exploring the layout, development, and future of Mexico's core industrial chains

  • Listening to domain experts from VC and tech enterprises, and benchmarking professionals from major companies who have entered Mexico in recent years, sharing experience on market entry and risk avoidance

...

People, Companies, and Institutions You'll Meet

  • Government, industry organizations, and academic institutions: Chinese Chamber of Commerce in Mexico, Mexican Ministry of Economy's Investment Promotion Agency, CCPIT Representative Office in Mexico, Chinese Embassy in Mexico, National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESM)...

  • Automotive supply chain: BYD, Reachable, Changan Automobile, Joyson Electronics, LCE, Lizhong Group, DSBJ, Huafushan Industrial Park...

  • Logistics, e-commerce, and fintech: J&T Express, SHEIN, Airwallex, Temu, ICBC, Stori (Mexico's largest digital bank), UnDosTres (local payments), Kavak (largest local auto fintech)...

  • Major tech companies, VC, and tech enterprises: Didi Chuxing, ByteDance TikTok, Huawei, Truora (local business digitization enabler), Hi VC (local venture capital), Angel Venture (local venture capital), unicorn QI Tech...

Additionally, since Mexico is a long journey, we'll also include some cultural tourism — Chichen Itza, Plaza de la Constitución, Palacio Nacional, Palacio de Bellas Artes, Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral, and more.

In short, beyond business-class flights, hotels, transportation, and overseas insurance, this trip will specially provide professional translation, cultural guides, local security, and other thoughtful services. More travel plans are also in development — welcome to scan the code to participate in our survey and get in touch: learn about detailed Mexico trip arrangements, key person lists, and other planned itineraries!

Looking forward to traveling with you!

Waves Odyssey

Image source | Waves Editorial Team

Layout | Nan Yao