São Paulo – Portobello, a maker of ceramic tiles, ended its participation in the Project Lebanon fair, in Beirut, with two orders closed with distributors from the United Arab Emirates and Lebanon. The company participated in the building sector fair at a stand organized by the Brazilian Embassy in Beirut, with the support of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce. The exhibition began on Tuesday (5) and ends on Friday (8).
“Both bought enamelled porcellanato. The orders total five or six containers and the distributor in Lebanon should also close other deals,” said Talal Merhi, the executive export advisor at Portobello. He says that the company has a distributor in Lebanon and that the company stand had good visitor movement. “We made between 70 and 80 contacts with builders, distributors and architects,” he said. He positively evaluated the Lebanese market for Brazilian exhibitors. “Lebanon has much field for building material,” he said.
Valdinei da Rocha, Foreign Trade manager at Universo Tintas, explains that the company does not yet sell to the Arab market, hence participation in Project Lebanon for the first time. “We came to make business with the Arabs come true,” he pointed out. The factory has been in operation for 69 years and only has a small share of production turned to the foreign market.
“I am trying to open further markets. I have potential to increase exports significantly,” said Rocha, without revealing the company’s production volume. According to him, the Lebanese do not have the custom of painting their houses regularly, as is the case in Brazil. “Here, there are no large paint shops, and the paint sector is not strong. We may manage to find greater space in the commercial sector than in houses, but if we manage to find a distributor, we may have a very good market,” he finished off.
“The exhibitors are making excellent contacts,” evaluated Rodolfo Ribeiro, head of the Trade Promotion department at the Embassy of Brazil in Lebanon. “They are making contact with the Lebanese market, which is small, but which represents new sales. When you exhibit in Brazil, most of the contacts already know you, but when you exhibit abroad, 100% of the sales are new. This represents an effective impact,” he pointed out. “This year, the quality of visitors has grown and Brazilian participation consolidated itself,” he pointed out.
Also participating in the Brazilian stand are brands Astra, KRJ, C3 Equipamentos, Saniram and Braseco.
*Translated by Mark Ament
