São Paulo – Four Arab countries are included in the group of fashion importers from the city of Natal, capital of the Northeastern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Norte, using regional inspiration. Currently, 14 companies from the state are participating in a project called “Natal Pensando Moda” (Natal Thinking Fashion), which is developed by the Brazilian Micro and Small Business Support Service (Sebrae) and focuses on preparing brands to create items inspired on local elements, like culture, characters or nature itself. The project worked out so well that, apart from strengthening themselves on the Brazilian market, the companies gained clients abroad.
According to the manager of the Garment Manufacturing Project of the Rio Grande do Norte state branch of the Sebrae, Verônica Melo, companies participating in the group export to countries in Europe, like France, Italy and Spain, and also to the Arab world, including the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Morocco. Foreign sales, also to the Middle East and North Africa, are mainly for beach fashion. Export currently answers to 10% to 15% of production of the companies in the project. The target, however, according to Verônica, is to increase them to 25%.
"Natal Pensando Moda" started being implemented in 2009, with 10 companies, and since then, three collections have already been released, including this year’s. Ever since the project began, it has been taken ahead by the Sebrae with the help of Brazilian stylist Ronaldo Fraga. It is the stylist who gives talks to businessmen regarding the collections, as well as promoting workshops and individual consultancy to each brand. In the first year, the theme of the creations included icons in Rio Grande do Norte, in the second it was “Câmara Cascudo”, a historian and folk scholar of Rio Grande do Norte. This year, inspiration is the culture and natural beauties of the state.
Apart from the training, companies participated in fairs through the project. For this year, participation is scheduled to take place in three Brazilian fairs and three abroad: Mode City and Prêt-à-Porter, in Paris, France, and the Spanish Children’s Fashion Fair (Fimi). Participation in exhibitions outside the country is in partnership with the Brazilian Textile and Apparel Industry Association (Abit). In the Arab world, no actions are forecasted, but Verônica recalls that importers in the region usually go to fairs in Europe.
The garment producers in “Natal Pensando Moda” are micro and small companies that produce between 3,000 and 20,000 items a month. According to Verônica, they gained prominence on the foreign market after the project, mainly due to the innovation they reached in their creations. "They managed to show retailers that the articles have history behind them," says the manager. Among the examples are the prints. Before the project, just one or two producers, according to Verônica, used fabric with exclusive prints. "Today the total is 99%," she explained.
With each year, new companies are expected in the group. Starting with the edition this year, the National Service of Industrial Education (Senai) became a partner in the project. Ronaldo Fraga participates at the invitation of the Sebrae. The stylist is one of the most renowned in Brazil. He is popular due to his daring and innovative creations.
*Translated by Mark Ament
