Asisvid, the insurance agency founded by Olga Beatriz Cervantes with a deep specialization in the wine sector, is diversifying into construction and renovations, the food industry and automotive through the acquisition of other insurance agencies. The expansion has been underway for less than a year and forms part of a planned business strategy designed to strengthen the agency's structure and reduce risk.
Cervantes describes a methodology that reverses the traditional process in a sector often seen as reactive. Rather than opening with the insurance product, she says her conversations begin with the client's company, the people who make it up and what genuinely worries the business owner. Her defining question is direct: "Where can you break?"
She says that relying on a single sector leaves a company in a vulnerable position, and the recent acquisitions were a deliberate move rather than an improvisation. "The opportunity to make the investment arose and I decided it was the moment to take the leap," she recalls. The firm is now in a consolidation phase, organizing its structure to absorb new clients while maintaining the quality of service it is known for.
The expansion has also led to a broader realization: although the technical details vary from one industry to another, the fundamental concerns of entrepreneurs are universal. Cervantes says the wine sector was her "great school" for understanding business risk, having spent years speaking with small and medium-sized winemakers who were often the founders themselves. Whether in wine or automotive, she says, the entrepreneur's pain is the same: attracting clients, keeping the supply chain intact and avoiding high staff turnover.
That cross-cutting view allows Asisvid to adapt solutions efficiently. According to Cervantes, risks related to personnel, sales or internal structure are very similar across industries. Products such as collective employee welfare plans, for example, fit a mechanic's workshop or a construction company because the core is always the person. "When we enter a sector, we don't ask what policy the client has, but what their real needs are," she says.
Cervantes adds that she understands a company's life cycle because she has been in that position herself. A young business needs to protect its activity and its production chain; later, with a healthy cash flow, it starts to consider offering health insurance to employees or pension plans to retain talent. Her work consists of accompanying the entrepreneur through each of those phases with the right solutions at the right time.
With its new dimension, the challenge for Asisvid is not only to grow but to do so sustainably and in line with its values. Cervantes says she has no obsession with becoming the largest agency. "I want to build an excellent agency, with good foundations, recognized for two things: business knowledge and service," she says. She adds that she does not want to grow at any price, but rather to understand the new sectors in depth while keeping sight of the principles that brought the firm this far.
"I have learned that growing is not doing everything faster, but advancing with criteria, step by step," she concludes. "That means listening to the client and taking on new challenges without losing closeness or the quality of service."
Sources: La Vanguardia.