São Paulo – The creations of the Squadro brand, based in Belo Horizonte, the capital of the state of Minas Gerais, are dressing Arab women. For approximately two years, the company, which manufactures women’s clothing with a daring touch of creativity, has exported its production to the United Arab Emirates through Paris. The clothing is sold to the Arab country by businesswoman Mona Ferrat, who puts showrooms together twice a year, with each new collection, at Hotel Regina, in the French capital.
According to the director of Squadro, Renata Campos, the brand’s items are exported to six stores in the Emirates. The businesswoman from the state of Minas believes that there is a perspective for growth, because ever since sales to the Arabs began, the brand has enjoyed increasingly greater receptiveness in the region. The production of Squadro is sophisticated and the items sell in Paris for prices above 250 euros.
Renata underscores, however, that the company is only getting started with foreign sales. Besides the Emirates, which are located in the Middle East, the brand sells to Europe, also via Paris, and to South America, directly from Brazil. Exports answer to only 6% of the company’s output, but Mona plans on increasing shipments to the foreign market. In Europe, according to her, there are good perspectives.
Before it begun selling via Paris, the brand would only export by means of international buyers who came to Brazil. Squadro manufactures 30,000 items per year. The company has an industrial unit in Belo Horizonte, as well as a showroom on Oscar Freire, a street that houses large fashion brands, in the city of São Paulo. The company has 42 employees, but some of the production steps are outsourced.
Squadro was born 13 years ago. The initiative came from Renata, a civil engineer who decided to make a career change. Inspired by her mother, who owned a textile mill, she decided to open a store for selling textiles. Between 2002 and 2003, however, sales of textiles dropped and the entrepreneur decided to work on another front. At first, she manufactured women’s shirts, combining knit and textiles, and then gradually expanded to include all sorts of women’s items.
Presently, innovation and creativity are features of Squadro’s collections. Renata coordinates the area of style herself, but two fashion designers also help develop the clothing. The brand usually presents its collections in fashion shows across Brazil, such as the Minas Trend Preview (MTP). The event also includes a business salon.
Contact
Squadro
Telephone: (+55 31) 3296 5021
Website: www.squadro.com.br
E-mail: vendas@squadro.com.br
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
