THE THULE STORY BEGAN in 1942 in the small community Hillerstorp in Småland. In his work shop Erik Thulin made grapples, spotlight grids and buckles. This later developed into roof racks and the Thule Company was created. Today, Thule is world leading in developing railings, like roof racks and roof boxes for cars.
FOLLOWING THE COMPANY expansion, ten years ago Thule started looking into the Latin American market and which growth potential the business could expect. In 1998, Thule initiated its expansion abroad in the Latin American region and decided to begin in Brazil.
Thule ’s roof box factory in Sao Paulo in Brazil.
Photo: Per Henricson
- The first challenge was to find an established importer. Several companies that we contacted considered our prices too high and demand insufficient. Finally, a private individual showed interest, says Per Henricson, responsible for the Latin American market.
THE FIRST YEAR WAS extremely tough for Thule, but when the company decided to invest in the sports segment, customers started to arrive. After six years in the Brazilian market, Thule opened a roof box factory in Sao Paulo in May 2004. Two years later, Thule purchased the independent importer to get rid of middle hands and gain bigger control of distribution channels. Since 2004, growth is 30-50 percent and today Thule is represented in almost all Latin American countries. In April, Thule launched an online shop that increased sales considerably.
Per Henricson at a customer event in Chile, just outside
of Santiago.WHEN PER HENRICSON looks back at the Thule ten year journeys, he is certain that all hard work has paid off:
- When setting up a business in Brazil, you have to look long term and count on two-three tough years. Once established in the market with a stable range of customers, it is worth its while. In many areas, Brazil is still a virgin market with a lot to develop. The roof box segment is for example new and we are only using 10 percent of the market potential. There is strong purchasing power in Brazil and little price sensitivity.
The downside is the bureaucracy and corruption in this region. However, in the past ten years, Per Henricson has noticed a decrease in both corruption and bureaucracy.
Emelie Ring