Atlas Eléctrica

Atlas Eléctrica (Atlas) was founded in a small shack in 1961 and, by 1976, grew to be
the first listed company to issue shares on Costa Rica’s stock exchange, the Bolsa
Nacional de Valores (BNV). The founders of the company knew that this new listing
opportunity would allow them to fund and help sustain Atlas’s growth potential. This
still holds true today. Market capitalization of Atlas at the end of September 2005 was
US$ 17.2 million down 11.8% from US$ 19.5 million as of 30 September 2004.
Atlas Eléctrica S.A. is the holding company of a manufacturing enterprise based
in Costa Rica with sales subsidiaries in Central America and the Dominican Republic.
Atlas currently produces household refrigerators and stoves under its own brand
names of Atlas and Cetron. The company also manufactures on behalf of other pri-
vate brands, such as Sunbeam and Nedoca, and previously manufactured under the
brand names White Westinghouse, Kelvinator, Frigidaire and Blue Point.
Atlas’s sales in Central America, Mexico, United States, Jamaica, Puerto Rico and
other Caribbean islands will yield estimated combined total annual revenue for fiscal
year 2006 of US$ 100 million. Atlas is the main player in the Central American
region with over 50% market share, competing head to head with products from Asia
and the Americas. Recently, Atlas had several product models that were certified
according to US and Canadian standards. This has opened up export market poten-
tial for Atlas, on which it hopes to capitalize in the next few years, especially in light
of recently concluded free trade agreements in the region. Export market expansion
is part of the company’s strategic growth plan and already accounts for the bulk of the
company’s 28.5% sales increase in 2005, compared to the previous year.
The main attributes that have allowed the company to succeed have been:
n Years nurturing a brand image based on quality and excellent post-consumer
service; and
n Creating value-products with tasteful designs accessible to the pocketbooks
of the targeted clients.

Case Studies 1