The Portuguese brand is strengthening its international presence with the opening of four points of sale at Galeria Inno. In the Belgian market since 2014, the new openings add another 240 square meters of retail space to Ana Sousa, which has 49 own stores and is available on three continents.
With a business model similar to El Corte Inglés and Galeries Lafayette, Galeria Inno has a history dating back to 1845 and is recognized as one of the strongest brands in Belgium. Currently, it owns 16 department stores in Belgium and the Portuguese brand Ana Sousa will be present in four of them, namely in the locations of Bruxelles Rue Neuve, Gent, Leuven and Schoten, with a 60 square meters sales space where it will be possible to find clothing, fashion accessories and footwear.
The four new spaces in Belgium have been open since March 1st and continue the brand's internationalization strategy, which had already been confirmed by Rute Sousa, CEO of MJJS, the company responsible for managing the distribution of the Ana Sousa brand, in an interview with Jornal Têxtil in May last year. "We 're not going to stop," she assumed at the time. "We see that people are willing, they are believing in the future and our policy and our international trade strategy is going to be reinforced. We are aware that to grow, we need the international market and we also realize that this is when we have to be partners, both with customers in Portugal and with customers abroad," she explained.
Ana Sousa's presence at Galeria Inno reinforces the company 's presence in the Belgian market, where it has been represented since 2014 and where it has, according to a statement, "won over the female public with the design and premium quality of its products. The presented collections offer the balance of the main fashion trends with the image of an adult, independent and contemporary woman ".
It is in this spirit that the collection for spring-summer 2021 emerges. "We lead in our own way. We are women with a vision. We move forward towards our goals, fearlessly. With a kind heart and a strong mind. We wear our power, mostly in black, with a child in one hand and confidence in the other," describes the manifesto on the website. Besides black, white, pink, blue, red and gray are also part of the color palette of the season, in solid versions, as in blazers, and in prints, which enliven dresses and blouses.
The collection is already on sale online and in Ana Sousa's 49 own stores, as well as in over 450 multi-brand stores around the world, in a total of 32 countries, including European markets such as Spain and France, but also Angola, South Africa, USA and Mexico.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, the brand has sought to instill a sense of security in consumers, with widespread measures at points of sale that allow them to enter and try on its pieces without fear. "Our consumers don 't need to be afraid. We are complying with everything," Rute Sousa assured Portugal Têxtil last year. "In addition to complying with what is said, we still create exceptional measures," she added. The brand is, among other things, using a disinfectant that allows female consumers to try on clothes safely. "It is applied in all stores and even in online shopping," the MJJS CEO pointed out, and "allows clothes to be put back on. Clothes, accessories, everything is disinfected, customers need not be afraid", concluded Rute Sousa.