São Paulo – The Brazilian auto parts company ZEN, world leader in the manufacturing of starter drives, is planning to increase sales to the Arab world in 20% this year. The growth should be driven mainly by the brand’s gaining of market in the Algerian market, the entrance in the Morocco’s market and the recovery of some economies of buying countries such as Egypt.
“We see 2017 as the year of the recovery for these markets due to the return to political stability and the rise in oil prices,” said ZEN’s comercial director, David Catasiner, in an interview to ANBA by phone.
The company exports to over 60 countries, among them Arab countries such as Lebanon, Jordan, UAE, Algeria, Tunisia and Egypt. In Algeria, sales growth should come from establishing of a new client, who began to distribute the brand’s products at the end of last year. “A distributor highly committed to the ZEN brand,” says Catasiner.
The opening of the Morocco market is set to take place until the end of this year, according to the business director. Meanwhile, countries such as Egypt, which went through the Arab Spring, should improve their economies. Catasiner points out that the Egyptian currency devalued nearly 80% in a year, making it more difficult for the country to import. The shortage of local currency usually complicates the conversion to the dollar for the purchases of goods abroad.
ZEN has been supplying Arab countries for near 30 years. The region’s market accounts for 2% of the company’s revenues and for 3% of revenues obtained through exports. Catasiner points out that the Arabs are an importante market to ZEN, but presente high volatility. “They are cyclical markets, the majority is oil-dependent,” says the director, highlighting that the price of the commodity impacts the purchasing power of the local population and the value of the currency.
The Arab Spring also brought instability to the local economies and impacted imports. So much so that ZEN used to export to Libya and stopped doing so after the conflicts. The company used to have a distributor in Syria who now operates in Lebanon. But ZEN is confident in the improvement of the region’s economies and in the increase of exports to the Arabs.
Four years ago, the Brazilian company attended Automechanika Dubai, the auto parts industry show that takes place in the UAE. ZEN has been exhibiting in the fair as part of Brazil Auto Parts – Trusted Partners, an exports promotion project organized by the National Association of Brazilian Auto Parts Manufacturers (Sindipeças) and by the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil).
Exporter
ZEN is located in Brusque, Santa Catarina state, 103 km from the capital Florianópolis, and was founded in 1960. Exports are part of the firm’s history since 1966. Despite selling to near 60 countries, the brand’s products reach 110 nation, since its parts are also re-exported. Dubai, for instance, re-exports the products of the Brazilian brand to other countries.
The company currently produces 9.2 million auto parts per year and 64% of its revenues come from exports. According to Catasiner, this year ZEN is betting on mainly non-traditional markets, such as Southeast Asia, North Africa, Central America and the Caribbean, to expand its presence abroad. In these last two markets, it has no operation at all and is planning to enter them. Currently, the regions of the world that are the largest buyers of the brand are, in order, North America, Europe and Asia.
The Arab countries are ZEN’s fourth largest market abroad. Its business director says that they are average income countries, such as Brazil and other Latin American countries, where consumers repair their vehicles. That’s where the company comes in with its repair parts.
ZEN exports mainly starter drives and clutch pulleys. It also manufactures hydraulic clutch actuators, starter and alternator housings, rigid pulleys, planetary gears, tensioners, chain tensors, starting plates, nautical and outdoors product line items and cold forming parts.
The company from Santa Catarina invests near 5% of its revenues in product development. Last year, approximately 200 new items were launched. In 2016, ZEN was listed in Você S/A magazine’s ranking of 150 best companies to work for. It also received an award from the Santa Catarina branch of the Brazilian Association of Human Resources in the Staff Management and Environment categories, and a Santa Catarina Prize for Education from the Federation of Industries of Santa Catarina State (Fiesc) in the Corporative Education category.
Contact info
ZEN S.A.
Website: www.zensa.com.br
Phone: +55 47 3255 2800
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
