Brazilian granite company Mibasa located in the city of Serra, in the state of Espírito Santo, in southeast Brazil, exports granite sheets mainly to the United States and Canada. In order to escape the crisis that hit those two markets, however, they started selling to Egypt, Morocco, Libya and the United Arab Emirates.
“When the crisis started in the American market, granite companies began seeking other options, among them Latin America and the Arab market,” explains Elcione Araújo Júnior, who is in charge of exports at Mibasa.
He explains that the granite sheets can be used in building façades, workbenches, floors, sinks, among other applications.
According to him, contact with the Arabs was established at trade fairs in the cities of Cachoeiro do Itapemirim and Vitória, as well as referrals from other clients.
Presently, the Arab countries account for less than 5% of the company’s foreign sales, and Egypt is the leading Arab buyer.
According to Araújo, the main advantage of selling to the Arabs is the market’s liquidity. “The Arabs are excellent negotiators, perhaps the best. They are usually very price-sensitive, but they pay on the spot. They have got money, they will not skip out on you. And if you have items in stock that are gathering dust, they will buy them if you set a reasonable price.”
Arab Fairs
A Brazilian company that represents international trade fairs in Brazil, Conceito Brazil, announced that the agreement it has with the IFP group, which promotes business events in the Middle East, has been expanded.
The Brazilian company already represented Riyadh Exhibitions, a subsidiary of the group that organizes trade shows in Saudi Arabia.
Now that the partnership has been expanded, Conceito will start promoting, among Brazilian companies, trade fairs held in Qatar, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq, according to information supplied by the company’s press office.
The events that Conceito intends to work on this year include the Beirut Jewelry Week, due July 20th to 23rd, in Lebanon; and Diyafa 2010, a hotel industry fair due November 5th to 11th in Doha, Qatar.
Last year, Conceito participated in two fairs in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: Saudi Build, for the construction industry, and Saudi Agro-Food, for agriculture and the food industry.
Service
Conceito Brazil
www.conceitobrazil.com.br
Anba
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Granibras, Granitos Brasileiros, a Brazilian company that sells marbles and granites, sees the Arab market as an alternative for boosting exports and minimizing the reduction in sales to the United States, the company's main market, in the face of the ongoing financial crisis.
In order to showcase its products, Granibras is going to participate in the Big 5, a trade fair for the construction sector, to be held from November 23 to 27 in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates.
This will be the company's first time at the Big 5. "We have not exported to the Arab countries yet, and we wish to change our focus because of the crisis," said the sales manager at Granibras, Renato Catalano.
Approximately 90% of foreign sales by the company are destined to the United States, which is cause for concern at the company. "I believe that the Arab market is fairing better than the others right now," he said.
According to Catalano, Granibras is going to take approximately 20 types of granites to showcase at the fair. "We are not familiar with the taste of the Arabs, therefore we are going to take various types, from the most basic to the most exotic," he stated. The colors of the stones include white, yellow, pink and green. "There are over 30 types of granite," he said.
Currently, the company exports half its output. "Up until the end of last year, 85% of our production was turned to the foreign market," said Catalano, who peaked at 40 containers shipped per month, and now is down to 15 a month. Besides the United States, Granibras has also shipped its products to Canada and Europe.
"Our production capacity is now 50% of what we can offer, therefore we are capable of expanding and supplying to new markets," said the manager. According to him, Granibras has capacity for processing 20,000 square meters of granite per month and counts on 30 employees. Besides granites, the company also imports marbles and other artificial facing stones, such as herculite (artificial granite).
Betting on the foreign market, Granibras is investing 8 million Brazilian reais (US$ 3.6 million) in a new processing unit in the city of Colatina, in the northern portion of the state of Espírito Santo. "The equipment is going to be all new, therefore production capacity is going to be larger, and faster than production in the city of São Paulo. Our focus is going to be exports," said Catalano.
Service
Granibras
Telephone (+55 11) 4524-1149
Website: www.granibras.com.br
With the depreciation of the currency at the time, Ferraz amounted a lot of debts and realized that, in that moment, exports were more worth it. The change in focus not only paid the debts, but also made the company grow.
"Today, I can say that I’m a great exporter. Even because I am 1.90 meter tall," jokes the owner of Ferraz Brasil, which is located in the southeastern Brazilian state of Espírito Santo.
Of the entire production, 97% is exported, and the North American market is the greatest buyer. So much that the company’s website is in English.
Four years ago the company started selling to the Arabs. Everything started when Ferraz participated in a fair in the sector in Dubai, in 2002. From then onwards, business with the Arabs just grew.
Today, he sells not only to the United Arab Emirates, but also to Saudi Arabia, Algeria and Kuwait. In the next few months, he should sign with Tunisia. In some countries, like Algeria, Ferraz counts on a representative. To the Emirates, on the other hand, sales are made directly. Algeria is the greatest buyer in volume, and the Arab Emirates, in value.
Of the 42 different types of granite offered by the company, the ones most bought by the Arabs are the yellow, green and blue granites – the latter one of the most appreciated kinds, since there are only two mines of blue granite in the world. One of them is in Bahia, state in the Northeast of Brazil, and its commercialization is done exclusively by Ferraz Brasil.
Sales to the Arab countries represent something around 10% of the company’s exports. "There is still a lot of growing space. But for such, we would have to do careful work to know the market better.
"Today, we work directly with the distributor who buys in great volumes. To sell products of higher added value, we would have to know who works with the final product, like the architects and the designers," explains the owner of the company.
This year, during the Vitória Stone Fair, trade show that takes place annually in the capital city of Espírito Santo, Vitória, Ferraz Brasil launched a new marketing strategy to sell their rocks: they lapidated the granites and, with them, made jewels.
"It was a way of showing that there are many possibilities for the granite. When you see a crude piece, large, you don’t stop to think that it is possible to do incredible things from it," says Ferraz.
The marketing action may become a branch in the company, but the strategy is still being studied by the owner.
Ferraz Brasil owns mines in the south of Bahia and purchases from mines in Minas Gerais. As well as that, they import marble. The company’s headquarters and showroom are in the city of Serra, in Espírito Santo. In all, there are 53 employees. Business perspectives for 2006 are of US$ 10 million.
Contact:
Office
+ 55 (27) 2122-6400
Showroom
+ 55 (27) 3341-5504
ferrazbrasil@ferrazbrasil.com.br
Anba – www.anba.com.br
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