The off-season Carnival helped boost demand for costumes, a habit that had disappeared with the pandemic.
The month of April, which historically tends to have weaker sales, recorded high sales at the Festas e Fantasias chain, one of the most traditional stores in the sector in the central region of São Paulo.
Sales are, on average, 30% to 40% above normal for the month, according to Pierre Sfeir, the store’s owner.
During the Tiradentes holiday, in addition to the samba school parade, in São Paulo and Rio, some independent blocks organize themselves despite the cancellation of the official calendar.
“We thought there would even be more movement, because of the blocks, but it is already above normal. We’ve been struggling since last year. Everything that comes to us is great, better than nothing”, he says.
At the beginning of the year, the businessman regretted the suspension of the Carnival blocks for the second consecutive year and even studied the closing of stores.
Sfeir says that Easter was already signaling improvement. According to him, sales for decorating malls and homes were 200% higher than last year. The network also bets on the return of the June festivals, but it notes that it is afraid of the impact of inflation.
Joana Wedge with Andressa Motter and Paulo Ricardo Martins
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