Europartner Helps Businesses in Brazil

By Anna Kaiser, Contributing Reporter

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – As Brazil is emerging as one of the world’s largest financial powers, foreign companies are eagerly looking to expand in Latin America’s largest economy. However, the Brazilian market is exceptionally difficult to enter, ranking as the 126th most difficult country to conduct foreign business in a World Bank/IFC study of 183 countries.

Expanding in this difficult yet potentially prosperous market often requires a local consultant to facilitate the process. Based in Brazil, but founded by internationals, Europartner has emerged as one of the top consulting agencies for foreign businesses looking to break into the Brazilian market.

Founded in Fortaleza, Brazil in 2003 by French nationals, Europartner has seen over ten years of success in supporting foreign businesses in Brazil and has expanded their offices to Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. Currently their largest office is located in Rio and run by director Mathieu Piques.

Europartner offers services in English, French, and Portuguese to businesses from all over the world and has assisted clients ranging from oil and gas companies to cosmetic manufacturers; the medical sector to gastronomic sector.

Europartner’s comprehensive range of services include strategic planning for entering the Brazilian market, assistance with the legal process of setting up in Brazil (including charter registration and visas) management of administrative, financial, and legal sectors, and accounting services (including bookkeeping, tax support, HR management and payroll).

The company’s founders recognized an opportunity to start Europartner due to the growing number of economic advantages present in Brazil that attract investors from all over the world. Due to Brazil’s impressive increase in Gross Domestic Product in recent years and recognition as an up-and-coming global economy, Europartner head of marketing and communication, Bastien Blanc, explained to The Rio Times:

“Brazilians hold a huge amount of purchasing power. A country of over 200 million people, with rising salaries and a growing middle class, represents consumers who don’t already have preset purchasing habits, unlike consumers in Europe or the United States.”

However, taking advantage of such favorable economic circumstances can prove to be a difficult task in a country infamous for protectionism and with different cultural practices.

“Cultural differences, knowing legal restraints, accounting, obtaining a corporate charter and visas are among the hardest parts of implementing a business in Brazil,” explained Blanc.

Europartner therefore not only helps with the logistical aspects of implementing business in Brazil, but also provides insight into Brazilian business culture and strategy.

The consultant firm acts as a buffer between professional worlds, adapting the companies professional strategy to fit into the Brazilian business culture. “We help our clients set up in a country where, professionally speaking, culture can be a problem,” said Blanc.

While Brazil is infamous for its protectionist policies, Blanc assures Brazilian business hopefuls that President Dilma Rousseff has been committed to lowering the “Brazil cost” – the term referring to the cost of foreign businesses or commodities operating or importing to Brazil.

“As an emerging world economy, Brazil has more recently opened itself up to the global market, therefore, in this developing economy, there is a high demand for skilled labor, especially in the field of consumer products, the oil and gas industry, and naval construction,” sales manager, Marion Andonian Miranda, told The Rio Times.

Foreigners are meeting this demand for skilled labor in Brazil, primarily Europeans and Americans, in reaction to the global recession in their home countries. “Brazil is breaking down its protectionist barriers and opening its doors to foreign businesses, but the existing system and laws surrounding foreign business are very complicated and will take major reform to update,” Miranda explained.

That is where Europartner comes in, “We take care of the complicated part, you focus on the business.”

To learn more about Europartner, visit their website or contact:

Europartner
Sala 802, 19 Av. Graça Aranha
Centro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Phone: +55 (21) 2524-0171

* This is an Advertorial for Europartner.