To grow, we need people to grow with us
A Swedish fashion retailer entering one of the world's most culturally distinct consumer markets has discovered that recognition, not price, is the first frontier of commerce. H&M's Brazilian expansion, led by a country manager who carries the memory of customers misreading a storefront sign, is unfolding as an exercise in deliberate humility — learning to pronounce a brand name in Portuguese, understanding that the year begins after Carnival, and grasping that Brazilian men dress for a complete moment rather than a wardrobe variation. In the long arc of globalization, this is the quieter, harder work: not conquering a market, but earning the right to belong to it.
- H&M faces a challenge that price cuts cannot solve — over 200 million Brazilian consumers who have largely never encountered the brand, making invisibility the company's most urgent obstacle.
- The retailer is deploying more in-store sales promoters than its standard model requires, training them to guide first-time shoppers through fabrics, sizing, and fit in a country where tactile discovery drives purchase decisions.
- Cultural surprises are reshaping operational assumptions: the commercial year effectively restarts after Carnival in March, and Brazilian male shoppers pursue complete aesthetic looks rather than color variations of a single item.
- Operating simultaneously across São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Porto Alegre means navigating three distinct climate zones, forcing localized inventory strategies that a centralized Swedish buying office cannot anticipate alone.
- A government decision to eliminate import taxes on foreign purchases under fifty dollars has intensified competition from Asian online platforms, squeezing traditional retailers even as H&M races to double its store count within three months.
- The company is betting that a five-day work week with two consecutive days off — unusual by Brazilian retail standards — will retain the motivated workforce that rapid expansion demands, framing employee wellbeing as a growth strategy rather than a cost.
When Joaquim Pereira watched customers in Portugal squint at H&M's initials and guess they stood for 'Hombre y Mujer,' he filed the moment away as a lesson in how global brands can arrive as strangers. Now, as H&M's country manager in Brazil, he is living a much larger version of that lesson. Nine months into the retailer's Brazilian presence, the central challenge has nothing to do with price or product — it is the challenge of being unknown in a country of over 200 million people.
Pereira's response has been grounded in deliberate humility. The brand is pronounced 'agá e eme' in Brazil — the Portuguese rendering of its initials — a small gesture that signals a larger commitment to speaking the market's language rather than imposing headquarters' assumptions. New stores opened with more sales promoters than H&M typically deploys, trained to engage first-time shoppers directly, explain materials and sizing, and invite the tactile experience that Brazilian consumers expect before committing to a purchase.
Brazil has also taught the company things no expansion manual anticipates. Pereira was told the commercial year begins after Carnival, not January 1st. He nodded — then lived through Christmas sales dissolving into pre-Carnival rhythms and understood that the country runs on its own temporal logic, restarting in March. Brazilian male consumers offered a more encouraging surprise: unlike Chilean men who buy the same pants in multiple colors, Brazilian men seek the complete look — pants, shirt, shoes, accessories unified into a single aesthetic moment.
The opening of a Rio de Janeiro location adds logistical complexity, requiring H&M to manage inventory across three distinct climate zones simultaneously. Rio customers gravitate toward beach fashion and lightweight pieces; next year's stock for that store will reflect what Pereira's team has actually observed, not what Stockholm might assume.
The regulatory environment adds further pressure. A recent government decision eliminating import taxes on foreign purchases under fifty dollars benefits Asian online competitors like Shein and Temu while squeezing traditional retailers. Against this backdrop, H&M is also staking a position on labor — implementing a five-day work week with two consecutive days off, a model that costs more but that Pereira frames as essential to retaining the people needed to sustain rapid growth. With plans to double its store count within three months, the company's bet is straightforward: in Brazil, as anywhere, the future belongs to those willing to learn before they lead.
When H&M opened its first store in Portugal years ago, Joaquim Pereira watched customers walk through the door and squint at the initials on the signage. Many assumed the letters stood for "Hombre y Mujer"—man and woman. The story stuck with him, a small lesson about how a global brand can mean different things to different people. Now, as country manager for H&M Brazil, Pereira carries that memory into a much larger challenge: introducing a Swedish fashion chain to a country of over 200 million people who have largely never heard of it.
Nine months after opening its first Brazilian store, H&M faces a problem that has nothing to do with price or product quality. It is a problem of invisibility. In a nation where many consumers have never left the country and never stepped foot in an H&M, the brand remains a stranger. Pereira arrived in Brazil with a deliberate posture of humility. "We had to be humble, willing to learn from the Brazilian consumer," he said during an interview marking the opening of the company's first Rio de Janeiro location in April. Part of that learning began with something as simple as how to say the company's name. In Brazil, H&M is pronounced "agá e eme"—the Portuguese rendering of the letters. In Chile, where Pereira worked for nearly four years, it becomes "ajeneme." The choice to localize the pronunciation might seem cosmetic, but it signals something deeper: a commitment to speak the language of the market, not impose the language of headquarters.
The operational response to the recognition challenge has been concrete and immediate. New stores opened with significantly more sales promoters—employees trained to approach customers directly, explain the products, discuss sizing and materials, and encourage people to touch and try on clothing. Pereira observed that first-time Brazilian shoppers wanted tactile engagement with merchandise. They wanted to feel the fabric, to see how something fit. The company adapted its staffing model accordingly. Expansion into new cities—Rio, Porto Alegre, Sorocaba—now serves a dual purpose: generating sales and building brand awareness. Meanwhile, e-commerce reaches customers across the entire country, extending the brand's reach beyond the physical footprint of stores.
But H&M is also learning from Brazil, absorbing lessons that no international expansion manual can fully prepare a company for. The most fundamental discovery concerns the rhythm of the Brazilian year. Everyone told Pereira that the commercial calendar truly begins after Carnival, not on January 1st. He nodded politely. Then he lived through it. Strong Christmas sales gave way to pre-Carnival spending patterns, and suddenly the company understood that the country operated on a different temporal logic. The year, in practical terms, restarts in March.
The male consumer presented another surprise, and a more encouraging one. In Chile, Pereira observed that men who liked a particular pair of pants would buy the same model in three different colors. Brazilian men think differently about fashion. They seek the complete visual—pants, shirt, shoes, accessories assembled into a coherent look. They chase the moment's aesthetic rather than accumulating variations on a single item. This insight will shape inventory decisions going forward.
The opening of the Rio store introduces a logistical complexity H&M has not yet navigated in Brazil: simultaneous operations across three distinct climate zones. São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and soon Porto Alegre each present different weather patterns and consumer preferences. Rio's customers, Pereira noted, show particular interest in beach fashion—t-shirts, shorts, lightweight pieces. Next year's inventory for that location will reflect this understanding. The company must ensure that each store offers what its specific customers actually want, not what a centralized buying office in Sweden assumes they need.
Beyond consumer behavior, H&M contends with Brazil's regulatory volatility. On May 12th, the government eliminated an import tax on foreign purchases under fifty dollars, a decision that benefits Asian online retailers like Shein, Shopee, and Temu while pressuring traditional fashion retailers and domestic textile manufacturers. The company navigates this terrain while also staking a position on labor practices. H&M arrived in Brazil implementing a five-day work week with two consecutive days off—a model that differs from historical retail norms in the country. Pereira frames this as both a moral stance and a practical necessity. "If you can rest two days a week, you'll be happy," he said. The model costs more. But for a company planning to double its store count within three months, retaining motivated employees is not optional. "To grow, we need people to grow with us," Pereira said. "If we can't keep people, it's hard to maintain expansion." The bet is that in Brazil, as elsewhere, the future of retail belongs to companies willing to learn, adapt, and invest in the people who make the stores run.
Notable Quotes
We had to be humble, willing to learn from the Brazilian consumer— Joaquim Pereira, H&M country manager for Brazil
To grow, we need people to grow with us. If we can't keep people, it's hard to maintain expansion— Joaquim Pereira, on H&M's five-day work week policy
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does it matter how you pronounce the brand name? Isn't H&M the same company everywhere?
It matters because a name is how people locate you in their mind. If they don't know what H&M stands for, they're starting from zero. Speaking Portuguese tells them we're not just parachuting in—we're trying to belong here.
But you could just advertise more, spend money on marketing. Why the focus on sales staff and local inventory?
Because advertising tells people about the brand. Sales staff and the right products tell people the brand understands them. A woman in Rio doesn't want to be sold a winter coat in July. She wants to know someone in the store gets what she actually needs.
You mentioned that Brazilian men shop differently than Chilean men. How did you discover that?
We watched. We paid attention to what people actually bought, not what we expected them to buy. That's the humility part—admitting that our assumptions were wrong and letting the customer teach us.
The government just eliminated an import tax that helps your competitors. How do you compete with Shein?
We can't compete on price alone. We compete on experience, on quality, on the relationship with the customer in the store. And we compete by being here, by investing in Brazil long-term, not just extracting value.
You're doubling stores in three months while operating across three climate zones. That sounds chaotic.
It is complex. But it's also an opportunity to prove we can think locally while acting as a global company. Each store becomes a laboratory for understanding a different part of Brazil.