Moroccan companies are being encouraged to look beyond the local market and build strong positions in specialised industries around the world. The HEM Research Center and the General Confederation of Moroccan Enterprises (CGEM) held a conference in Casablanca on 22 September to discuss how local companies can become leaders in niche markets.
The event focused on the “Hidden Champions” model, a term developed by German business expert Hermann Simon. It describes companies that are not widely known by the public but are among the leading players in a specific market, sometimes at a global level.
Simon, founder and honorary chairman of Simon-Kucher & Partners, joined the event to explain the model and how it could apply to Moroccan companies.
The conference brought together business leaders, researchers and experts to look at what companies need to grow internationally and keep their position over the long term.
The programme included opening remarks from Samia Terhzaz, deputy managing director of CGEM, and Driss Ksikes, director of the HEM Research Center.
A panel discussion brought together Mohamed Horani, chairman and CEO of HPS and former CGEM president; Neila Tazi, CEO of A3 Communication, CGEM parliamentarian and chair of the Foreign Affairs Commission; and Anass Moutaoukil, vice-president and CEO of La Voie Express Group.
Oumaima Chamchati, a teacher-researcher at the HEM Research Center, moderated the discussion.
The event also presented research on Moroccan companies that could fit the Hidden Champions model. HEM associate researchers Mohamed Nabil El Mabrouki and Sofia Rougay presented the findings of their study and local case studies.
The Hidden Champions model usually applies to companies that focus heavily on a specific market. They often compete through specialised products or services, close relationships with customers, international expansion and continued innovation.
The model could give smaller Moroccan companies another way to expand abroad. National export growth has traditionally received strong support from large industrial projects and sectors such as automotive, aerospace and phosphate processing.
Smaller specialised companies could add another layer to that growth by targeting narrow markets where they can compete internationally.
The issue is particularly relevant given the size of the small-business sector. CGEM represents more than 90,000 direct and affiliated members, with 95% classified as very small, small and medium-sized enterprises (TPMEs).
HPS, led by Horani, provides payment technology to financial institutions in international markets. La Voie Express operates in logistics and transport, while A3 Communication works in communications and event management.
The conference also connected academic research with the experience of business leaders. The HEM Research Center is studying Moroccan companies that have characteristics associated with the Hidden Champions model.
HEM Research Center was established in 2007 as the research arm of HEM International University, a member of the LCI Education network. Its work covers management, economics and social sciences.
The CGEM represents businesses across Morocco, with TPMEs making up the vast majority of its membership. The conference focused on how some of these companies could move from serving domestic markets to competing in specialised markets internationally.
