2Rios deals with crisis with exports and plus size market sales

The economic crisis has caused a 15.9% dip in production by apparel manufacturers in the last two years, according to a survey conducted by the MacroSector consulting firm, based on data from IBGE. This is the largest ever drop in the pace of industry activities. 2Rios, which has been making lingerie for nearly 30 years, was also affected by the recession. In 2015, the Santa Catarina-based company was forced to cut production by 10%. Matheus Fagundes, president of 2Rios, which is headquartered in Joinville (SC), says that he faced two alternatives at the time: continue to downsize the company and wait for the economy to turn around or take action to grow the business even in a crisis. He chose the second option.

2Rios was a mid-sized company with 170 employees, with a popular brand geared towards the classes at the so-called bottom of the income pyramid. In the second semester of 2015, Fagundes decided to turn things around. He reinforced his team with experienced industry professionals, going from 26 to 46 people, and began placing the brand in boutiques. A study of the lingerie market showed that the plus size lingerie niche, which the company had been producing for the last six years, could be better explored.

“We were able to place 2Rios alongside major brands and develop specific cuts for larger lingerie sizes,” he says. Two years ago, 2Rios hired model Aline Zattar, Miss Plus Size, to showcase the brand’s lingerie. This year, a marketing campaign shot in New York featured model Fluvia Lacerda, considered the Gisele Bündchen of the plus size segment.

With these and other actions to cut costs and boost productivity, volumes at 2Rios grew by 40% this year, to 200,000 pieces per month. At the same time that the company adopted measures to deal with a domestic recession, Fagundes decided to take a big step into e-commerce and establish the brand once and for all in the foreign market, which already accounts for 20% of its production. Since 2005, the brand has invested in internationalization through participation in Texbrasil – the Brazilian Textile and Fashion Industry Internationalization Program, developed by Abit in partnership with Apex-Brasil (Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency).

For 14 years, 2Rios has been mostly exporting to Europe, South America, the USA and Japan. In 2015, Fagundes understood that it was time to set up a distribution center (DC) in the USA. “You can’t just complain about the crisis and expect business to improve based on actions outside of the company. The government is slow to make decisions. Work must be done internally, with a team engaged with achieving results,” he says in closing.

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