Organized in association with ABIHPEC, the Brazilian Association of the Cosmetic, Toiletry & Fragrance Industry, the aim is to grow the Brazilian industry's share of what is currently the largest market for personal care products in the world.
The move will kick off in July when ABIHPEC is organizing a trading promotional event in Florida at the APEX-Brasil Distribution Center in Miami. The event aims to link Brazilian companies with North American importers, distributors and brokers in the week before the Cosmoprof event takes place.
ABIHPEC has been working to represent the interests of the Brazilian cosmetics industry overseas ever since the Integrated Sectoral Project was created in 2001 in partnership with APEX-Brasil (Brazilian Export and Investment Agency).
To date this has led to the participation of Brazilian cosmetic companies associated with several events in the United States.
Based on this experience, ABIHPEC said it came to the conclusion that it had to create mechanisms to 'facilitate the structuring of these companies in the US in order to increase the competitiveness of Brazilian products and create new opportunities in several market niches'.
Following on from this the Florida event will be taking place at the Miami Free Zone, where the APEX-Brasil Distribution Center is located. About 20 North American companies will be participating from July 10-13 in pre-scheduled meetings with Brazilian businessmen.
The organizers hope that the event will act as a precursor to the Cosmoprof North America, which is due to take July 16-18 in Las Vegas. It should attract around 20,000 industry professionals, including manufacturers, distributors, importers, wholesalers and retailers, the majority of whom will be from North America.
In preparation for both events ABIHPEC has organized seminars on how Brazilian cosmetic companies should best approach exporting to the North American markets, with seminars taking place in both Brazil and Miami. The first seminar was held on June 1st and addressed the topic of 'Strategies to Enter the North American Market'. "Many U.S. importers require an already organized distribution structure in the country and the companies participating in the export project can count on the assistance provided by APEX-Brasil," ABIHPEC Executive Officer Manoel Simões said.
The seminars aim to help companies how to conduct business in another language as well as the specific know-how necessary to seal business deals in what is very different environment to that found in South America. "In addition to investing in technology, production capabilities and skilled personnel, the exporter must also master the cultural aspects of the market in focus," Dr. Paulo Rocha, from HRM International Consulting Company, which has helped organize the seminars.
"There are many obstacles to exporting Brazilian products, such as high taxes, requirements by governmental agencies and the image of Brazil abroad viewed as not always so reliable. On the other hand, we have several incentives that can act as springboards for companies interested in investing in new markets," he added.