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The sweets produced by Simas, company in the city of Macaíba, in Brazil's northeastern state of Rio Grande do Norte, may already be found in the supermarkets of four countries in the Middle East.
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Palestine have been importing the goodies from the Brazilian company for more than 10 years. According to the exports manager, Alexandre Custódio de Queiroz, sales to the Arab market, which represent about 4% of the total exported by the company, have been stable since 2002. "The Arab countries import about 450 tons of candies and lollipops produced by Simas per year," he said. According to Queiroz, the lollipops are the main product for exports to the Arab market, so much that they get a special packaging, developed especially for the region, with information in Arabic. In 2004, Sima's revenue with exports reached US$ 15 million, which represented a third of the total earned by the company during the year. The two greatest importers are the United States and Canada. The history of Simas started in 1946. The brothers Orlando Gadelha Simas and José Gadelha Simas bought candy factory São João, in the state's capital city, Natal, made some adaptations and started the handmade production of candies and caramels. In the 1950s the factory was mechanized, which allowed for large-scale production and the company's growth. In 1970, Simas moved to a new building and the line of products was diversified. Around the World During the year of 1977, the company participated in the first Brazil Export fair and won international clients. As the years passed, the increase in business generated a need for expansion of the company's physical structure. In 2002 the company moved their installation to the Industrial Park located in the city of Macaíba, 20 kilometers away from Natal, in an area of 220,000 square meters, of which 25,000 square meters are of built areas. With this new structure, planned and executed to meet the most varied demands, the company won new partnerships. One of them is Disney-Simas, which allows for the exclusive use of the characters Mickey, Minnie, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Pluto and Goofy on the products. Simas is also one of the suppliers of candies and chewing gum for the traditional Halloween party, carried out in the end of October in the United States. Currently the company employs about 1,200 workers, produces 4,000 tons of candies, caramels, lollipops and chewing gum per month and exports to more than 50 countries around the world. Anba - www.anba.com.br
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