Nearshoring in Mexico Gives Rise To A New Culture Of Luxury

Since 2022, the phenomenon of nearshoring — the strategy of relocating industrial activities to a neighboring country — has accelerated at a dizzying pace. Weary of endless supply chains with Asia and growing dependence on China, the United States is looking anew at the potential of its southern neighbor. This renewed interest is helping turn northern Mexico into a genuine workshop of the future.

Investment data speaks for itself: in 2024, U.S. companies alone were expected to inject over USD 40 billion, including USD 21.9 billion already confirmed by the PAM nearshoring 2024 report, with total FDI flows reaching USD 36.9 billion from all countries — a historic record. It is worth recalling that, since 2023, Mexico has become the United States’ top trading partner, ahead of China, while the NAFTA free-trade agreement of the early 1990s had already established an industrial partnership driven by Mexico’s low labor costs and geographical proximity.

Today, with a manufacturing GDP that represents 21.4% of the national total (according to Pro México Industry), Mexico is witnessing the rise of new industrial clusters across new cities. Between 2024 and 2025, 400 new nearshoring-related companies set up operations in the country, according to the Mexican Association of Private Industrial Parks — some in entirely unexpected sectors.

It is in Monterrey, the capital of Nuevo León, that this new wave of nearshoring is at its most intense. While the region is well known for being filled ewith automotive plants and electronics warehouses, its activity is booming like never before: Tesla has even announced a 1,600-hectare Gigafactory set to open near Monterrey in 2026, representing a USD 6 billion investment. Moreover, Nuevo León has also become a MedTech hub since the pandemic. As a result, real estate developments and new café-galleries are springing up around Monterrey, especially in San Pedro Garza García — one of Latin America’s wealthiest municipalities.

Let us recall that in 2023, more than 5.6 million square meters of industrial space were under construction across Mexico, including 1.7 million in Monterrey alone — nearly one-third of the national total. Once primarily a city of production, it is morphing into the city of projections, triggering rampant gentrification and soaring land values: industrial rents have jumped 39% in a single year, according to Prodensa, and average square-meter prices now rival upscale neighborhoods in Miami, hovering around USD 4,000.