SLOBRAZ

The first “face” we present in the segment called Face-To-Face is Matjaž Cokan, President of SLOBRAZ. The talk was about the past, present, and future of the Slovenian-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, based in South America’s biggest city.

The beginnings of SLOBRAZ date back to the year of 1991, when Slovenian emigrants and businessmen, all affiliated with the Association of Slovenes in Brazil, founded the Society for the Promotion of the Economic Cooperation between Slovenia and Brazil. Their merit was that Brazil was one of the first countries to recognize the independence of Slovenia.

Our members are Slovenian and Brazilian companies acting in very different fields of industry. We are connected with the main purpose of assistance, networking, and promoting new business opportunities. We are also included in the network of business clubs Spirit Slovenija. We offer Slovenian companies up-to-date information and assistance in doing business with companies in Brazil. Due to our excellent knowledge of the local business environment, the specifics of the Brazilian business and the legislation, we can share our experiences with the companies that want to enter the Brazilian market. We regularly organize business events, seminars, workshops and talks on current business topics.

During the pandemic, we adapted to the new way of working and networking very quickly. We transferred all the events to the digital platforms and thus, which was a big surprise for us, we increased the number of participants and also the number of SLOBRAZ members.

If before the pandemic we were mostly limited to operating in São Paulo, which is the business centre of Brazil and South America, during the pandemic we were able to connect compatriots across Brazil through virtual events and meetings. We didn’t even know about many of them before the pandemic. In this way, we unintentionally fostered a sense of connection and solidarity. Especially in the first months of the pandemic, when everything was still completely unclear and unknown, this connection was very important to us.

We are cooperating very well with the Slovenian Embassy in Brazil, which also supports us in organizing numerous events aimed at promoting the Slovenian economy. JAPTI, the former agency for entrepreneurship and foreign investments, opened a representative office of the Slovenian economy in Brazil in 2008. Later, this economic representation passed under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia, but, unfortunately,  in 2017 the Economic Department in São Paulo closed. That raise concerns that Brazil may not be on the priority list of the countries expand the Slovenian economy to. Our goal is to promote entrepreneurship and the Brazilian market, despite its specifics, is a great opportunity for European companies. This is also shown by the strong organization of Eurocamaras, which is the umbrella association of more than 5,000 European companies and industries in Brazil. SLOBRAZ is an active member of Eurocamaras, within which we are also committed to the adoption of a free trade agreement between the EU and Brazil.

I can say that both sides consider us an important interlocutors in bilateral matters. However, for many Slovenian companies, Brazil is (unfortunately) considered as an unknown too far-away country so I if I express myself in the football jargon it goes like this: each of them lies on one side of the ocean, and SLOBRAZ plays as a midfielder.

When we transferred our events and meetings to digital platforms due to the pandemic, we noticed how many entrepreneurs of Slovenian decency work in very diverse areas in Brazil. This was the point where the idea of creating an interactive map was born, on which it is possible to find providers of Slovenian products and services available in Brazil. In the future, in cooperation with the Slovenian Global Business Network, we would like to include the map in the SLO Global platform and thus expand the connection between Slovenian business people on all five continents.

As I have mentioned already, during the pandemic we managed to connect compatriots from different parts of the country. At the time of the closure of the economy and public life, the idea of a Slovenian Christmas basket project was born, with which we wanted to help promote small entrepreneurs and sell products with a Slovenian identity. It is also a kind of implementation of the map I mentioned earlier into practice. We first carried out this project in 2020 and, because the response was so positive, we repeated it last year. The result is 177 baskets sold, for a total of 1,116 products sold. A total of 580 kilograms of food and drink, and part of the revenue went to charity. The project was executed with the support of the Governmental Office for Slovenians Abroad and we managed to provide logistical support and deliver the products all over Brazil.

I am also pleased that Spirit Slovenija accepted us among the business clubs in 2021, which is a confirmation of our long-standing work and efforts to promote the Slovenian economy in Brazil. Above all, this is a recognition to all who works as volunteers and invest their spare time in SLOBRAZ on behalf of Slovenia.

A Chinese proverb says: “All the flowers of the future are in the seed of the present.”

For more information on SLOBRAZ’s activities visit the official webpage or send an e-mail ➡️