São Paulo – Dumond, a female shoe brand belonging to Paquetá group may open franchises in Egypt and Morocco next year. Dumond already has 20 shops in the Arab countries and, according to the export manager at Paquetá, Fabiano Pizzato, is prospecting Egypt and Morocco. In the Arab world, the brand from Rio Grande do Sul already has franchises in the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Lebanon and Tunisia.
In the Emirates, Dumond has its largest number of shops in the region, with eight units. And it was there that, last month, the brand promoted the release of its winter collection, at Dubai Mall. According to Pizzato, the event was promoted at the Dubai Mall as it is one of the most visited shopping centres in the Middle East. At the release, to which 30 journalists were invited, there was a cocktail and demonstration, with models trying on the shoes.
The event took place at the Dumond shop itself, and was promoted in partnership with the unit franchisee. Apart from opinion-making journalists, also present were some VIP clients. According to Pizzato, there was great return from the event, with much material published in press vehicles in the region. The sales figures are still being followed up on, according to him, but the reflex in sales, according to Pizzato, is not immediate.
Dumond opened its first franchise in the region four years ago, with similar promotion, with a parade, to mark presence there. The company export manager does not discard the possible promotion of other marketing activities in the region, but prefers to maintain secrecy while they are not totally agreed upon. He stated that the brand is always seeking some kind of event in the countries it operates in.
Not specifying figures shipped and percentages, Pizzato says that Dumond is growing in the Arab world. “The Middle East is a very important point to us,” said the executive. Apart from the eight shops in the Emirates, the company has two shops in each of the following countries: Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon and Tunisia, as well as one each in Oman and Bahrain.
Paquetá group produces 55,000 pairs of shoes a day and has several brands, among them Ortopé, Capodarte and Lillys Closet. The company also operates strongly in shoe retail and has five production units in Brazil, in the states of Rio Grande do Sul, Ceará and Bahia. There are also two factories abroad, in Argentina and the Dominican Republic. The company was established in 1945 and specialized in shoes for export in the 1970s.
Contact
Paquetá
Telephone: (+55 51) 3599 8850
www.paqueta.com.br
*Translated by Mark Ament
