São Paulo – Brazilian pharmaceutical industry executives attended a lecture this Wednesday (30th) at the offices of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, in São Paulo, to learn more about the workings of this industry in the Middle East and North Africa. The workshop was also attended by professionals from other industries who are interested in doing business with Arabs.
The event is sponsored by a partnership between the Arab Chamber and the Brazilian Pharma Chemical and Pharmaceutical Inputs Industry Association (Abiquifi), and precedes a matchmaking event for Arabs and Brazilians due on August 5th and 6th, during the CPhI South America fair in São Paulo.
The workshop was delivered by the Arab Chamber’s CEO Michel Alaby, International Business executive Rafael Solimeo, and Business and Markets manager Rafael Abdulmassih.
“The Arab countries rank among the leading pharmaceutical importers in the world, and are the 23rd leading export destination for the Brazilian pharma industry. There is plenty of room for growth,” Solimeo stressed. In his presentation he showed that last year, Arab countries imported a combined US$ 18.59 billion worth of pharma products from the world. Brazil, however, only accounted for US$ 11.57 million of that sum.
The Arab companies attending the matchmaking are Tabuk (Saudi Arabia), Bajafar Medical (Sudan), Reopharm and Al Taqaddom Pharmaceutical Industries (Jordan), Ibn Hayyan&Mohdar (Yemen), Al Multaqa Drugs & Pharmaceutical (United Arab Emirates), Unipharma (Iraq), Biopharm and SigmaTec Pharma (Egypt).
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Sudan, Iraq and Emirates are some of the top Arab pharma importers.
During the lecture, the profiles of each of the matchmaking companies were outlined, as well as those of their countries of origin. “Europeans are always among the main trade partners with Arab countries in this industry,” said Solimeu. He also explained that countries like Saudi Arabia and the Emirates operate as distribution hubs in the region, acting as gateways into other countries.
Adriana dos Santos, the New Business director for Brasterápica Farmacêutica, notes that her although her company does not export at this time, it is expanding and beginning to seek out export avenues.
And what caused the company to become interested in the Arab market? “I see many opportunities, because they already import from Europe and the United States. I believe Brazil offers more competitive pricing, so there is an opportunity to be explored,” she says.
Brasterápica manufactures medication for the flu, fever, headache, cough, cold, vitamin supplements for children, and phytotherapy products, among others. “I hope we can pave the way for new business deals,” she said regarding her expectations for the matchmaking with Arabs.
Theraskin, a maker of cosmetics, dermo-cosmetics and therapeutic treatment products, is also looking to start selling to foreign countries. “The Arab market is very large. I believe it holds several areas of interest to the company. We are not certain that we will start exporting right away, but we believe some of the countries, considering their market characteristics, may be interesting eventually,” said Products manager Álvaro Menezes.
At the presentation, the profiles of Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Sudan attracted the executive’s attention. Menezes believes the matchmaking will kick-start his prospecting. “We will begin to learn a bit about our possibilities as concerns exports and the foreign market,” he said.
How to negotiate
The workshop also featured important tips on doing business in the Arab world. “Arab businessmen favour personal relationships over entrepreneurial ones,” Alaby warned.
The Arab Chamber CEO also highlighted the importance of one-on-one contact when doing business, and explained that email is a tool mostly used by the younger executives, while older businessmen prefer the telephone, in case an actual meeting is not possible.
Alaby also discussed the Ramadan, the holy month of Muslims, which ended on Monday (28th). “During the Ramadan, it is not advisable to schedule trips to [the Arab world]. They work less hours and are not allowed to drink water or eat [during daytime]. Doing business during this period is harder,” he said.
According to Alaby, “we must be familiar with the culture in order to avoid mistakes and keep negotiation channels open.” The executive also stressed the importance of speaking other languages, such as French and English, when the time comes to talk business with Arab executives.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
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