By Filipe Pacheco

A samba school parade.

IF YOU ARE TRYING TO REACH SOMEONE IN BRAZIL this week, especially Tuesday, and no one gets back to you right away, don’t take it personally. The people of Brazil are a little busy partaking of one of their national passions. During the main days of Carnaval – traditionally from Saturday until the following Ash Wednesday at midday – work scales back a bit. And don’t even bother ringing up on Tuesday the 21st, because that’s the official Carnaval holiday.

Most businesses, including official governmental agencies, schools, banks, post offices, and retail stores will open again on Wednesday afternoon. If you really want to be answered, wait until later on Thursday.

However, that does not mean no business is being conducted amidst all the revelry.

For most companies that operate here, whether they are foreigners or not, they have to consider these days as holidays, and work on a lower-scale model. Since Tuesday is an official national holiday, those that decide to operate fully during that day have to accept the conditions that are applicable in such situations, like paying double-time for each hour worked.

For most outsourcing companies that operate in Brazil supplying services to international clients, they need to make sure they have plenty of employees working those days. For service providers mainly focused on the domestic market, it’s likely that production might fall in comparison to other times of the year – but companies realize that their competitors are producing less as well, so no worries for everyone.

A Good Time for Networking

For Apex-Brasil, the agency that promotes exports and investments, the days of Carnaval are a good time to share with those who have plans to invest in the country. For the fourth year in a row, Apex will bring investors from about 30 different countries to watch the Desfile de Carnaval at Rio – the traditional parade of the samba schools – from a Camarote, or special VIP area (think luxury boxes) that provides the best view and much comfort – like drinks, food, sofas, and massages – for watching a whole night of samba.

It is common among big Brazilian companies to sponsor Camarotes and invite clients and special guests as a way to network in a different environment. During the three previous years of the “Carnaval trip,” more than 500 potential investors came to enjoy the national Brazilian party.

Besides going to see the parade in Rio, guests will visit factories, stores, and industrial centers representing segments ranging from technology to textiles. The visits will take place in several different states, such as Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Santa Catarina. “The visits will be to Brazilian companies of excellence, and which are competitive,” says Mauricio Borges, president of Apex-Brasil. These trips are essential for foreign investors and other businessmen to learn more about the nation’s production and development capabilities, he says.

Apex-Brasil’s guests will include representatives of HTIBI, a tech park in Beijing.

Software developer Totvs, in partnership with Brasscom (the Brazilian Association of Information technology and Communications Companies), will host Mário Gómez, general director of the Mexican construction firm Imperquimia. Totvs already has a commercial connection with Imperquimia.

Softex (the Association for the Promotion of Brazilian Software Excellence) is also bringing a guest from Mexico: Manuel Gerardo López, director of Mauorista en Cómputo de Antequera, an importer and distributor of IT and telecom products and solutions. The association will also bring Ivan Todorov, director and partner of the American investment firm Global Emerging Markets, and from Portugal will come Joaquim Florentino Simões Melâneo, an executive with VoIP Comunicações.

“Carnaval is the biggest party in the world, and is definitely becoming an event that generates commercial contracts,” says Alessandro Teixeira, who was president of Apex-Brasil in 2010, during the second year of the Carnaval visits. If deals are actually going to be closed during the party days this week is hard to say. But that the guests are going to have some fun – that is for sure.