Who said, Berenice? provides reach 400 shops

Created for a year and four months, "Who said, Berenice?", franchise network specializing in makeup of the Apothecary, predicted end 2013 with 70 stores, but managed to overcome the goal. Today the company inaugurates the 101st unit and, by the end of the month, can open four more. In five years, the brand Director, Alexander Bouza, believes he can reach 400 stores. "It will depend on the growth of the economy", he ponders.
The dots are scattered in 25 cities in 11 States and the Federal District. Second Bouza, the mark is already in almost all major malls in the country, so the forecast is that the network grow less next year. It is expected from a high of 30%, totalling just over 130 stores. "There are still important places for us in, like Manaus, São Paulo and Minas", says the Executive. However, a medium town as Uberlândia (State of Minas Gerais) does not support many stores, unlike the capital Belo Horizonte, for example, which already houses ten units. "It's more [than the number of openings will slow down] than because we glimpse a most difficult year economically."
Bouza expects a macroeconomic scenario of "neutral to positive" in 2014. "If it's very favorable and there are good opportunities of negotiating points, we may revise this goal, as happened this year," he says, optimistic.
According to the Executive, the makeup market grows at a rate less this year in comparison with last year, but the rate of expansion is still high. Between January and August this year, the expansion was 9% in comparison with the same period in 2012, according to Abihpec.
Today the category is still dominated by direct selling companies: Avon's leader, followed by Natura. Both relaunched their main lines of makeup this year with changes in formulas, packaging and new products. "Still has plenty of room for growth in shopping malls," said Bouza. But, in retail, the competition only increases. The French L ' Oréal launched a new strategy for the Maybelline brand and planned to have 50 kiosks by the end of the year-it's 58. The French also Sephora opened the first store in the country in the middle of last year and today has nine points.
Who said stores, Berenice? are relatively small, with 40 m2. "The hard thing is to maintain profitability in a limited space," said Bouza. For that, more important than increasing the portfolio is renew it, and the plan is that 10% of the row to be replaced every year. The network's portfolio consists of 500 items, considering variations of colors and sizes. Makeup and accessories (such as brushes) are the biggest selling hits, but the brand also has 12 perfumes-or 24, counting the various sizes. A fragrance line accounts for only 5% of revenue, and Bouza wants double that proportion. The idea is to have, in 2014, new items in the category, in which her sister the Apothecary has tradition.
The brand store opens today at the luxurious Shopping JK Iguatemi in São Paulo. But the network is present in holdouts of several social classes. Within a month, stores were opened in Itaquera, in the East zone of São Paulo, and on rua Oscar Freire, in the Jardins district. "Our desire is to talk to people that have more affinity of behavior than geographical proximity and economic issues," said Bouza. Age doesn't count. "In stores, you see girls of 15 and 70 women, they all want to look beautiful," she says. Companies such as Nike, Coca-Cola and Havaianas have a present positioning and inspired the Who said, according to the Executive, Berenice. "We are a brand new, if we don't make a bolder bet and adapted to Brazilian, we run the risk of going unnoticed," said Bouza, for whom the bet is risky, but has worked out.