São Paulo – Docile, a sweet factory in Rio Grande do Sul, has just opened the market in Oman and Egypt. In June, the company should ship a container of sweets and chewing gum to each country, totalling over 600,000 packets of sweets. The contracts were made at Gulfood, in Dubai. "We hope to export a container a month to each country. It is a very interesting volume," said the export coordinator at Docile, Cleber Joner Harth.
The main products shipped should be gum sweets, pastilles and chewing gum. According to Harth, the Arabs have a very similar taste in sweets to the Brazilians. "We do not need to adapt the products," he said. Of the 45 countries to which the company exports, 10 are Arab nations, like Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Lebanon.
In the case of Egypt, Harth said that the company has already exported once, but the sales did not become regular. "Now we have started a long-term partnership," he said. According to him, from two years to date, Docile has been adapting to supplying the needs of the Arab market, with the translation of packages and folders into Arabic. The first contact with the Arab market took place in Germany and France, where many businessmen participate.
To intensify sales and open new markets in North Africa and the Middle East, Docile participated in the Gulfood for the first time in February, and closed a deal with Syria. "Gulfood brought us many contacts and opened new horizons. The participation in these events has been adding more and more to our strategy," added the coordinator.
In May, company representatives also participated in business roundtables at the Apas, a supermarket sector fair that took place in São Paulo. In the meetings, which were organized by the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, the company made contact with businessmen in Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Kuwait. "Our strategy is now to focus on these contacts," said Harth.
According to him, the Arab market has a strong potential for growth, mainly in the countries of the Gulf, which have high buying power. Of the monthly Docile production, of around 400,000 kilograms, 28% is turned to the foreign market. Argentina, Venezuela and Russia are the three main markets, followed by the Arab countries.
Company expectations are for 26% growth in foreign sales this year. "The first five months of the year were very good for us. We managed to exceed our targets," said Harth. Docile, which employs 430 people, is headquartered in Lajeado, Rio Grande do Sul, and has been in the market for over 15 years.
Contact
Docile
Tel. (+55 51) 3726-2600
Fax. (+55 51) 3726-2699
Site: www.docile.com.br
*Translated by Mark Ament