São Paulo – Werner Calçados is expanding its business in the Middle East. Last week, the Rio Grande do Sul-based company attended a fair in Italy and started to deal with a United Arab Emirates chain store with 110 shops in the region. Besides the Emirates, the potential client also owns shops in Iran and Lebanon.
“Our expectation is to occupy a container with 4,000 to 4,500 pairs. The shipment must be completed in June and the shoes should hit the stores in September”, says Leonardo Sauter, Werner Calçados’s export representative. According to the executive, negotiations are in progress.
The company has other clients in the Emirates and also in Saudi Arabia. According to Sauter, Werner’s shoes are sold in Arab countries for more than ten years already. He says that sales to the region went through a slump, but it’s now turning back to previous levels.
“We already had clients in Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and Libya. We have action in store to get these markets back. We want to revive them now since the Arab market is turning back its interest for Brazilian shoes”, he says. He also reveals that the company is developing an action plan to expand sales to Arab countries.
Style
The executive highlights the shoe style made by the company, which he says pleases women from the Middle East. “Our line meets what the Arab market is looking for, with stones, high heels, platform shoes, an elegant style for nighttime”, he explains. “The Arabs like spark, glamour. They always look for a shoe with something different, with laser-made or metal details and Always with high heels”, he says.
Today, Werner’s sandals and shows are exported to more than 30 countries. Sauter says that the company’s production reaches 40,000 pairs per month and that 30 to 40% of this total goes to foreign markets. The main destinations are Russia, Japan and Poland.
Founded 45 years ago, Werner Calçados is based in the town of Três Coroas, Rio Grande do Sul, and has 350 employees.
Contact
Werner Calçados
Webite: www.wernercalcados.com.br
Phone: +55 (51) 9282-1920 (Leonardo Sauter)
E-mail: leonardo@wernershoes.com.br
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
