Marina Sarruf*
marina.sarruf@anba.com.br
São Paulo – Adding value to shoes and working with medium and high end products is one of the solutions for Brazilian exports to continue rising despite the appreciation of the Brazilian real against the dollar. This is the opinion of the director of the Couromoda, the International Shoes, Sportsgoods and Leathergoods Fair, Jeferson Santos. "Brazil already has a profile to compete with the European market," he said yesterday (14) to ANBA on the first day of the event.
Last year, Brazilian sector exports totalled US$ 5 billion, which represented growth of 11% over 2006, when the sector exported US$ 4.66 billion. "In terms of volume, foreign sales dropped, but due to greater value-added products, we had growth of 11%," stated Santos. According to him, one of the buyer markets of these shoes is the Arab. "The Arabs buy middle and high-end shoes, mainly male shoes," he said.
According to Santos, the Arab countries are a potential market for Brazilian companies, but it is necessary to understand the consumer demand. "We have the desire and capacity for export," he said. He also said that Brazil is currently different from China as it makes its own fashion. "Brazil no longer only sells commodities, it sells fashion," he said. That is what the exhibitors at the 35th Couromoda are gong to show to the over 70,000 visitors who should visit the exhibition up to Thursday (17), the last day of the event.
The expectation of the organisers is for the fair to generate business of around 5.5 billion Brazilian reals (US$ 3.2 billion), against 5.2 billion reals (US$ 3 billion) last year. "Brazil has potential to increase exports, despite the weakening dollar," he said. According to him, the country has production of 800 million pairs of shoes a year, being 120 million for export. The country is the third main world producer of shoes.
Last year, the average price of Brazilian shoes reached US$ 60 per pair, which shows that Brazil has been repositioning itself on the foreign market with greater value-added products. Currently, Brazilian shoes are shipped to over 100 countries.
The force of the leather and shoe chain is confirmed by the value it represents, 50 billion reals (US$ 29 billion), and by the turnover of the domestic market, around 35 billion reals (US$ 20 billion) in sales of shoes and artefacts, like handbags, cases, backpacks and accessories.
Fair
The 35th Couromoda, the main fair in the sector in Latin America, presents novelties by over 3,000 brands made by 1,100 companies. These exhibitors answer to 90% of the Brazilian production of shoes and leather products. The 70,000 visitors that the event hopes to receive should include importers from over 50 countries, among them Arab nations.
Service
Couromoda
Date: January 14th to 17th
Time: From 10:00 am to 8:00 pm and on the 17th, from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Site: Anhembi Exhibition Pavilion
Address: Avenida Olavo Fontoura, 1,209 – São Paulo
*Translated by Mark Ament
