Dubai – Brazilian natural syrup company Kaly has worked on its image in the United Arab Emirates for at least two years. For the second time at the Gulfood trade show, the brand ran for a sustainability prize this year at the Gulfood Green Awards. The award recognizes the efforts of companies that encourage good practices in all sorts of ways, and the Brazilian product running was Kaly’s guarana syrup, made from the extract of the Brazilian fruit. The Gullfood show took place last February in Dubai.
“I have many opportunities in this Arab markets. I already have two importers here in the UAE, but the country with the most potential due to its sheer size is Saudi Arabia. I already export to the country, and I have an importer, but I’m looking for partnerships with other importers,” said Valeria Cristina Natal (pictured above), International Sales executive of the Distillerie Stock do Brasil (D’Stock), which has Kaly as one of its brands represented in the Arab country.
The syrup made from guarana ran for a sustainability award
The Kaly syrups are used in alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails, as well as refreshments, coffee preparations and the cuisine. The brand has 36 different flavors, and the executive says that the presence in the Gulf has helped to expand the contacts to other regions. “Earlier this year, we had more prospective purchasers from the UAE, and I found many people who work with Africa as well. This show tends to take over other shows around the world, as it’s equidistant from several other countries,” she pointed out.
She was also visited by Saudis and believes the company will expand its presence in the country in the medium term. “I made several good connections there, and I even talked to a woman who wants to be our exclusive distributor there. Saudi Arabia is a large market, at some 40 million residents. I feel very honored when they recognize my work as a woman in this industry. And I’m sure I’ll break into new markets, as I already have connections in Bahrain and Qatar,” she said.
The Meridiano coffee has also reaped rewards from its entrance into the UAE. “We had a deal closed in Abu Dhabi to enter only in a supermarket chain, but when we brought the beans, the client asked to retain the order and be our exclusive distributor in Dubai, too,” Renato Fasolo, the brand’s Exporter manager, said. He had taken the product to the ADIFE show in Abu Dhabi, and then to Gulfood.
At the Dubai show, the brand hold a tasting session. “This was important to get the customers’ feedback. We also had coffeeshops wanting to buy the coffee, local distributors wanting to the work, but this was already closed. We’re very satisfied. Our strategy is showing the Brazilian coffee to the Arab world, a method they don’t have yet. Coffee is now a global trend; the market is growing across the world. People want to have new experiences, and this makes it easier for new methods to break in,” Fasolo said.
The brand aims to prospect other markets in the Middle East and beyond this year. “We had some visitors from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman. Russia has also turned out in search of coffee, as well as some countries in Africa and Oceania. This show is already global and has attracted more and more countries outside the Middle East bloc,” the businessman said.
Translated by Guilherme Miranda
