São Paulo – Brazilian architect Vincenzo Visciglia plans to go beyond interior and fashion design in 2015 and expand his businesses in Dubai, the Arab countries and Brazil. Still in the first half, a store of his brand Aavva will be inaugurated in the new Design District in Dubai, the new address in the city for luxury brands. In Brazil, the architect will open several coffee shops from the chain Paparotti, like he had previously mentioned to ANBA in September, and bring Aavva fashion items. At the same time, he’s still working with interior design.
“Aavva’s showroom will have 300 square meters. The place will host the high fashion, the prêt-a-porter and our section of home decor”, says Visciglia. Some decoration objects, such as the chandeliers, will be made in partnership with Brazilians. As for the clothing, Aavva produces custom-made items with a focus on Arab women’s attire. It was created by Visciglia and his partner, Ahmad Ammar.
Currently, eight Dubai stores sell Aavva’s collections. Besides the new store, which will open in April along with the fashion district, Aavva will produce clothes designed with crystals, as the result of a partnership with a manufacturer of the product. “From now on, all our collections will carry some articles designed with crystals”, says the architect. The first items should be presented in April 2015, within the summer collection.
Besides strengthening the brand in Dubai, Visciglia will bring it to other countries: Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar and Bahrain are some of the future destinations for the collections. Iran, which is not Arab, already receives clothes from the brand. Brazilian clients can now purchase the brand. Still in January, shops in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro will sell Aavva’s products. “We will adapt some collections and pieces for the Brazilian women”, says the architect.
More projects in Brazil
Visciglia was born in Tatuí, center part of São Paulo state, studied in the United States and went to live in the United Arab Emirates four years ago. After an invitation from a local engineer, he started to take on interior design jobs in Dubai. Some of his clients live in other countries in the Middle East and North Africa. One of them is the Malaysian coffee shop chain Papparotti, founded in 2003 by businesswoman Rasha Al Danhani. Visciglia created the brand’s visual identity and interior design. Now, Visciglia and Danhani are planning to bring the brand to Brazil.
In November, the architect was in Brazil to choose the locations and to start a research for the product’s price setting. The first store will open in Rio de Janeiro at the end of the first semester. The second one will be in São Paulo. Visciglia is already considering an expansion to the country’s inland and to the federal capital, Brasília. “In a second moment, we will open franchise negotiations. We intend to open between eight to twelve stores per year”, he says.
Still in the first half, the architect will come to Brazil for a presentation. The theme will be the luxury industry and market in Dubai. Interior design projects in the Arab countries never end. “I’m finishing a project in Saudi Arabia and already have two other clients. One is a coffee shop, from Turkey, to which I will create the brand and visual identity. The other is a readjustment of an American restaurant chain”, he says.
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
