Grupo Salvador Caetano, SGPS, SA or simply Salvador Caetano is a Portuguese holding based in Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal that controls some enterprises on vehicle assembly, components and distribution business.
It had a turnover of €1.6 billion in 2012 and is responsible for 6,000 jobs, besides Portugal, in the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, Cape Verde and Angola.[1]
History
The roots of Grupo Salvador Caetano can be traced, in 1946, to Salvador Fernandes Caetano (1926–2011) then with the name "Martins, Caetano & Irmão, Lda.", in the coachbuilding sector, becoming the first coachbuilder in Portugal (Salvador's brother (irmão), Alfredo Caetano, some years afterwards, founded another coachbuilding company, named after him: recently the company was renamed as Starbus, as well as Mr. Joaquim Martins who founded JD Martins).
In 1965, the workshops in Oliveira do Douro were inaugurated and in 1971, Salvador Caetanos's first industrial unit for vehicle assembly was built in Ovar.
In 1968, Salvador Caetano became the importer of Toyota, introducing the brand in Portugal. Since 2003, they are assembling the Dyna medium truck for export to several West European markets.[2]