THE COUSIÑO-GOYENECHEA FAMILY (1810-1940): RISE AND FALL OF A CHILEAN FAMILY BUSINESS

In many of these sectors this family was a truly pioneer, many of which are still important after 200 years: the composition of Chilean exports have not changed that much since Cousiño-Goyenechea's times. [...]this business group, exploited natural resources, but also participated in many other sectors of the economy. [...]surely most important of all, in association with other capitalists, Cousiño launched "Cousiño Garland & Co." (1852), with the above mentioned Garland, and the Alemparte Brothers, to exploit coal deposits deep in the south of the country (Astorquiza, 1942; Gaete, 2003; Nazer, 1994). [...]Luis moved beyond the coal complex, making new investments in rural estates, buying hacienda "El Escuadrón" and "Los Ríos", the latter being an extensive plot located south of Curanilahue (nearby Lota), where he decided to plant pine and eucalyptus to supply Lota and Coronel with wood (Astorquiza & Galleguillos, 1952). [...]he was further compromising with the strategy of vertical integration pursued by his father: wood was fundamental to build the tunnels to mine deeper coal. [...]the beginning of industrialisation in Chile is very much exemplified in the business activities of this group: they produced their own bricks, wine bottles, silk textiles and smelted copper, hydroelectric centrals, amongst other products.