Havaianas Strategic Plans for The US and The 2008 Collection

During the SwimShow 2008, the President of Alpargatas USA, Elaine Sugimura and their Vice President, Glen Lagerstrom gave us an exclusive interview talking about the company's plan for the most famous Brazilian flip flops, Havaianas Sandals, for the US market.

NS: What are your strategic plans for the US?

ES: Havaianas has been managed in the US through a distributorship with Style West, and this is continuing still today. What Alpargatas Brasil has decided to do in the beginning of this year, was to create a corporate office in the US, because the US is the largest consumer base. Another reason to begin our expansion here is because Americans have a universal fashion feel. We have decided to do is through a major marketing plan as well as a sale strategy with our distributor Style West, who are here at the trade show helping us to expand the business. We started this ad campaign in May and it is running thru September and that's our first national campaign here. It's our first footprints in the US to expand not only the luxury level of the business but also the mid-stream Nordstrom, Macy's and specialty accounts.

NS: What niche are you targeting?

ES: The market we are targeting is not intended to compare to Brazil, as we are not looking to cover the entire market as in Brazil, but doing it from the high end to the middle.

GL: With the focus in the Specialty stores as well as top chair department stores, as Saks 5^th Avenue, Nordstrom, Bloomingdales, and Macy's.

NS: What is the new collection bringing?

GL: The new collection is highlighting some of our bestsellers in particular one of our new footshapes, which is actually a strap shape, called the slim. The extensive use of color in the collection, but the other thing that we are now starting to focus on and achieving great success with, is the screen printing. This encompasses some of the seasonal motif and some of the camouflage motif- for both men and women. We have the polka dots, we have the stripes, and in addition to that, the other big opportunity we can see growing is in childrens and baby category. We have really wonderful characters and colors so that our children and baby products are just wonderful. You just look at those and they are just precious.

NS: The kids collection is extremely cute as it really speaks for itself!

ES: It's all about comfort, it's all about fun, it's all about joy in your life, so when you see the product just as you are today smiling... that's the way it makes you feel.

NS: Yes indeed! It surely is very nice being able to be stylish and comfortable at the same time.

GL: The way you feel is in your heart and also in your feet.

The plans for Havaianas in America are huge in numbers, multi-million dollar campaigns, style, comfort and joy to spread among avid high end consumers!