Spain culture and business

1. Spain
Soumya Kethu
Philip Glover
Bryn Loeffler
Jeffrey Chan
Linda Zhang
Kathleen Dolan

2. Skit
• Business Interaction

3. Location & Map of
Spain

4. Regions of Spain

5. Sevilla

6. El Catedral De Sevilla

7. Granada

8. Barcelona

9. La Sagrada Familia

10. Regions of Spain &
Stereotypes
Spain is very culturally diverse amongst its
regions.
• Northern Spain: Known to be strong,
rough and really loud.
• Eastern Spain: Consists of Barcelona,
which many people are annoyed at
because of their attempts to become
independent.
• Coastal Spain: Popular for tourism
because of the warm weather and
beaches.
• Southern Spain: Very relaxed and chill
environment.
• Mid-Spain: Aside from Madrid (the
capital) , consists of mostly farmers.

11. Barcelona vs. Madrid
• Barcelona resents Madrid
because of their past
attempt to repress
Barcelona’s Catalan culture
and target Catalan men in
drafts.
• Barcelona is very touristy,
thus prices are higher.
Barcelona
Madrid

12. Stereotypes and
Culture

13. Spanish Stereotypes
 Flamenco
 Spain as a unified country
 Lazy
 Bullfighting

14. Flamenco
 1400s=Gypsy tradition of folk music and dance
performed in “cafes cantantes”
 1800s=Dance academies (escuela bolero), theater
 Countless kinds of flamenco based on region, based on
rhythm, lyrics, etc.
 abandolao
 huevla
 alegria

15. Flamenco
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pp5Jv8dTTQ

16. Bullfighting
 National treasure or source of embarrassment?
 Outlawed in Catalonia and Canary Islands
 Stages
 Tercio de Varas
 Tercio de Banderillas
 Tercio de Muerte
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QkQ4-UWk98

17. Religion in Spain

18. Catholicism
• Catholicism and Islam have been in conflict since
Spain had religion
• Catholicism was the official religion of Spain till 1931
and again from 1939 – 1971
• Spain has had religious freedom since the death of
Francisco Franco
• Catholicism is an obligatory lessons in schools
• Some taxes still go to Catholic church

19. Semana Santa
• Holy Week leading up to Easter
• Celebration emphasizes the death of Jesus and the
suffering of his crucifixion
• The elements within the celebration illustrate the value
Spaniards put on visual beauty
• Ornate floats
• Flowers
• Intricate costumes
• Bright fabrics, and banners

20. Business in Spain

21. Communication Style
• Understated
• Personal pride and honor important but they do not respect people
who brag a lot about themselves
• Indirect
• Expect listeners to read between the lines and like to do small talk
while doing business.
• Face Saving is Important
• Personal honor is very important, and criticism is seen as personal
and not objective, and an exercise of rank
• Value Intuition and Experience
• Prefer to talk to people they trust and make decisions based on
intuition rather than completely rely on facts.

22. 1st Meeting
• 15-20 minute wait for meetings is very common
• Be formal, and address as Senora, Senior, or Senorita
• Handshakes are appropriate
• Become acquainted before diving into business details
• Talk about family, and background to build trust
• Meetings don’t tend to stick directly with agenda, and
negotiations can be lengthy

23. Spain Today

24. Unemployment at a
Peak
• Topics of government and
politics are to be avoided
• Blame government for high
unemployment rates
• Unemployment climbing
steeply since the 2008
global financial crisis
• Highest level since
Franco’s dictatorship in
1975

25. Politics

26. Skit
• Social Interaction

27. Spanish Food

28. Spanish Food
 Paella
 Octopus/Shellfish (Galicia)
 Tortilla Espanola
 Salmorejo
 Gazpacho
 Croquetas
 Churros
 HAM

29. QUESTIONS?