“MADE IN” Wave 2: Understanding country-of-origin associations in Argentina, Mexico, Spain

The second wave of our conversational AI moderated tracker in three Spanish speaking countries – Argentina, Mexico, Spain – ran at the end of May 2026, asking consumers in each country about their associations and feelings of products and goods made in each of those three countries.

We utilised a consistent set of questions to Wave 1 (EU3) administered by our trained AI Avatar (Izabella) to probe & ladder participants in each country about: –

• Their perceptions of products & goods made in each country.
• What is a typical product in that country and what makes it unique to that country.
• How they feel in general about goods made in that country (very positive to very negative) and why?
• Which country has the best reputation for making cars nowadays (W1 – Electronic Goods), out of these 3 countries and 9 other main economies.

Associations by country of origin (AR, MX, ES)

Which one of these phrases reflects how you feel in general about products and goods made in Argentina?

	Positivity of Country of Origin – Argentina
	Which one of these phrases reflects how you feel in general about products and goods made in Argentina?
	People from	Very Positive	Positive	Negative	Very Negative
	Argentina	61	36	3	0
	Mexico	49	51	0	0
	Spain	49	49	3	0

The most positive perception of Argentine products is amongst consumers in Argentina (61% very positive), a step ahead of the impression in Mexico and Spain (both 49% very positive).

What “made in Argentina” means to consumers
Top-of-mind associations have two main themes. Quality is the leading description, associated to slow-grilled beef/meat, part of the Asado Argentino social & cultural gatherings, and outside of beef/meat come dulce de leche, yerba mate & mate, empanadas and Malbec wine.

Typical examples of products are familiar domestic brands in this broad food-and-culture set, such as Arcor, Havanna, Marolio, Sancor, Milkaut, Terrabusi, Fantoche, Guaymallén, Mistral.

Which one of these phrases reflects how you feel in general about products and goods made in Mexico?

	Positivity of Country of Origin – Mexico
	Which one of these phrases reflects how you feel in general about products and goods made in Mexico?
	People from	Very Positive	Positive	Negative	Very Negative
	Argentina	19	78	3	0
	Mexico	86	14	0	0
	Spain	46	49	3	3

The most positive perception of Mexican products is strongly amongst consumers in Mexico (86%), the joint highest (with Spain) in the 6 countries surveyed to date.

What “made in Mexico” means to consumers
Mexico-made is expressed and understood as mix of cuisine, cultural identity, and handmade authenticity.
The main perceived differentiator is sensory performance—especially distinctive taste, with spicy/hot flavour being a strong first association, followed by artisan quality and local freshness.

Typical Mexican examples are tacos, burritos, enchiladas, guacamole, quesadillas, followed by drinks (tequila especially, margarita, mezcal, beer), often bundled with food.
Mexican bakery/cookies/bread brands (e.g., Bimbo, María cookies, Tía Rosa) are also mentioned.

Which one of these phrases reflects how you feel in general about products and goods made in Spain?

	Positivity of Country of Origin – Spain
	Which one of these phrases reflects how you feel in general about products and goods made in Spain?
	People from	Very Positive	Positive	Negative	Very Negative
	Argentina	44	47	8	0
	Mexico	38	62	0	0
	Spain	86	14	0	0

The most positive perception of Spanish products is also strongly amongst consumers in Spain (86%), the joint highest (with Mexico) in the 6 countries surveyed to date.

What “made in Spain” means to consumers
There is a national identity & pride in Spain for being Spanish (1 in 5 spontaneously say this) and associations with being made in Spain’s are led by gastronomy, reinforced by quality.
Top-of-mind associations centre on mediterranean food/cuisine and iconic high quality/premium ham/cured meats (pork), olive oil, paella, tapas, and rioja wine.
Typical examples of premium meat cuisine are jamón ibérico/serrano and authentic cold cuts (embutidos such as chorizo & regional adaptations of the Catalan botifarra).
The leading non-food brand mentioned is Zara.

Country of Origin – Combined

	Combined 3 country perception of that country's goods/products
	Made in ….	Very Positive	Positive	Negative	Very Negative
	Argentina	53	45	2	0
	Mexico	51	46	2	1
	Spain	56	41	3	0

Whilst the positivity of each country averaged out across the 3 countries combined appears similar, with minimal negativity, the level of very positive to positive varies.
The highest subgroups are Spanish & Mexican consumers for their own country’s products/goods (86% very positive), but Mexican consumers are less positive to ‘Made in Spain’ (38% very positive) than Spanish consumers are to ‘Made in Mexico’ (46% very positive). The lowest ‘very positive’ rating is amongst Argentinian consumers for ‘Made in Mexico’ (19%).

Whilst “Made In” Wave 1 in DE, FR, GB revealed country of origin in those EU countries had more of a manufacturing & engineering orientation, food is the driver in country-of-origin perceptions for each of these three countries. And each country has a distinct and differentiated second layer of understanding and meaning to its food:

• Argentina adds brand familiarity and national products.
• Mexico adds craftsmanship and cultural symbolism.
• Spain adds premium quality, trust through tradition and regional credibility.

Country with “best reputation” for Cars

Finally, we asked these participants to think about cars and which country has the best reputation for making cars nowadays.

	Country with Best Reputation for Cars
		Combined (n=110)	Argentina (n=36)	Mexico (n=37)	Spain (n=37)
	Germany	43%	42%	43%	43%
	Japan	31%	39%	22%	32%
	China	13%	8%	16%	14%
	Mexico	4%	0%	11%	0%
	Spain	3%	3%	0%	5%
	USA	3%	3%	5%	0%
	France	2%	3%	3%	0%
	South Korea	2%	0%	0%	5%
	Argentina	1%	3%	0%	0%

Across, and in each of, the three countries Germany emerges as the country with the best reputation, followed by Japan, a close second, and China a distant third.

The reasons for selecting a country for best reputation in cars covered 2 main themes:
• Perceived Build Quality: premium materials; good finishes, reliability, durability/long lifespan.
• Advanced technology: innovation, being at the cutting-edge of design & aesthetics.

Research Details
Fieldwork conducted on the Yasna platform on Saturday May 30th, 2026. A self-funded investment by insight engineers.
N=36-37 interviews per country, n=110 in total, aged between 25-63, equal male/female primary shoppers.

Wondering about the national and regional associations relating to where your product, and those of your competitors, are produced?

Let’s chat and explore together. Please contact me, Jeff Deighton: insights@insight-engineers.com