Construmex: housing investments for Mexican migrants and their families

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore the challenges and implications related to the integration of low‐income customers into the strategy of CEMEX, one of the world's largest building materials companies. Design/methodology/approach - A case study with data from interviews of a wide variety of stakeholders as well as observation and review of company documents. Findings - Construmex was launched following CEMEX's experience withPatrimonio Hoy, a socially minded business targeted at low‐income families. Since its inception in 2001, Construmex helped more than 14,000 Mexican migrants in the USA improve, build or buy a house for themselves or their families in Mexico. Through a comprehensive value proposition, Construmex provided access to remote sales, micro‐credit and professional design and planning assistance. Practical implications - Among early barriers was an initial overconfident approach from the company, as well as a low level of trust from potential clients. The program's success was possible through the establishment of key partnerships. By playing an intermediary role between migrants and their beneficiaries in Mexico, Construmex helped to increase the resource efficiency and effectiveness of housing investments. Migrants gained control of the destination of their money and saved time and resources. Among unsolved challenges was the need to reach a larger scale and financial sustainability. Opportunities to strengthen impacts were related to improved engagement of salespersons, local distributors and beneficiaries. Originality/value - The case provides insights on how a low‐income market can be integrated to the business strategy of a large company resulting in the creation of social and business value.