São Paulo – Brazilian colourful gems that may be worth more than diamonds. This is the business of Lasbonfim, a company from Bahia that produces jewels, cut stones and decorations, and that has been selling to the foreign market since the 1980s.
“Brazil is among the seven main producers of colourful stones in the world and Minas Gerais and Bahia are the main producers of gems in the country. Foreigners get here with that information,” said Karyna Sena, partner, manager and designer of the company that was established in 1967, regarding the start of sales abroad. According to her, many foreigners who visited Salvador in the 1980s bought stones at the shop and, to date, exports grow due to word of mouth.
Currently, Lasbonfim exports to 23 countries, including the United States, Canada, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom. “The heart of our business is cut stone,” says the businesswoman. Among the kind of gems with which the company works are the imperial topaz, aquamarine, emerald, citrine, amethyst and Paraiba tourmaline, which is more valuable than diamonds.
“Today, 55.85% of my revenues come from exports,” pointed out Sena. Large stones are also part of the Lasbonfim export portfolio. “They are rough stones that have decorative and collection value, and some stones weigh one hundred to two hundred kilograms,” she said. “I have already sold items up to 1.80 meters tall,” said the designer.
In jewels, Sena says that she works with different design. “We focus on ‘Brazilianness’. I use much large material, which is very common in shops in Arab countries and in India,” she says. “I work on better finishing; I work on delicate detailing of the item,” she says.
This use of large stones, she says, has already attracted the attention of Arab buyers. Early last year, Sena visited Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates and, with the help of the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex), contacted four jewel importers.
Up to now, she has not yet closed deals in the Middle East, but says that the region is one of the focuses. “It is a very large potential market,” she said. According to her, there is also a buyer in Qatar interested in her product.
Contact
Lasbonfim
Telephone: (+55 71) 3322-9854
Site: www.lasbonfim.com.br
*Translated by Mark Ament
