Sapeka Lingerie opens distribution center in Angola

Known for sensual underwear and accessories, Sapeka Lingerie is inaugurating its first distribution center outside of Brazil this year. The location chosen is the city of Benguela, in Angola, the country which is the brand’s the largest consumer market on the African continent. The initiative is being supported by Texbrasil, the Brazilian Fashion Industry Internationalization Program, developed by Abit and Apex-Brasil (Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency).

Sapeka has been exporting lingerie and costumes to Africa for seven years, but sales picked up in 2011, when the company took part in the International Trade Show in Maputo, Mozambique, also with Texbrasil support. Wesley Loureiro, the company’s CCO, says that he was able to close some deals at the event that resulted in more constant orders, reaching an annual average of 83,000 items exported. “Before, sales to Africa were under BRL 8,000 per month. Today, this amount is up to BRL 70,000 and we expect to reach BRL 965,000 per month,” says Loureiro. Other reasons were also considered when choosing Angola: its location on the western coast, the common language and the growing demand for the brand’s products.

The new distribution center has 350 square meters of area and it will initially have 12 employees, all Angolans. With an initial investment of USD 500,000, the brand intends to gain a return on this amount within, at most, two years. “We want to end the first year of operations with revenue near USD 700,000, and in five years we want to be bringing in between USD 3.5 million and USD 4 million annually. To do this, we intend to do more personalized work as of 2016, with the creation of items made exclusively for the African public, according to preferences for prints, colors and design,” the executive emphasizes.

Sapeka is about to celebrate its 16 year anniversary, with a factory in Nova Friburgo (RJ) and a distribution center in Piracicaba (SP). The company had BRL 10 million in earnings in 2014 alone. In addition to the African countries, the company also exports, albeit lesser, to Europe and the United States. According to Loureiro, negotiations are ongoing to open distribution centers in North America, Portugal, Italy and Germany.