EU-BRAZIL Investment Dialogue

Business mission takes seven Brazilian franchise networks to Spain and Portugal in search of European scale

Since October 19, 2026, seven Brazilian franchise networks have been carrying out a business mission in Madrid and Lisbon, scheduled to end on October 24. The delegation is part of the Franchising Brasil program, conducted jointly by the Brazilian Franchising Association (ABF) and ApexBrasil. Representing the country are the brands Total Clean, Corpo Bueno, Jah Açaí, Maria Pitanga Açaí, Detroit Steakhouse, Lave & Pegue, and Anjos Colchões e Sofás, with businesses spanning sectors such as food, aesthetics, automotive services and residential cleaning, furniture, and self-service laundromats.

The itinerary began in the Spanish capital, with a soft landing seminar at the Radisson RED Hotel, attended by diplomats from the Commercial Sector of the Brazilian Embassy in Madrid and members of the Spanish Franchising Association. The panels addressed intellectual property in the European environment, master franchise agreements, selection of commercial locations, and tax and banking compliance. Next, technical visits to malls and consolidated networks allow franchisors to evaluate customer foot traffic, the price per square meter, and operating costs. In Lisbon, the agenda includes a legal and marketing workshop at the Portuguese Trade and Investment Agency (AICEP), visits to local franchise units, and, on the 23rd and 24th, attendance at the official pavilion of the 29th Expofranchise at Pátio da Galé, a fair promoted with the Portuguese Franchising Association and aimed at business rounds with European investors.

The division of roles between the two countries guides the strategy. Portugal, due to linguistic and cultural affinity and its large Brazilian community, serves as an access point and for model validation, while Spain, with a denser market and consolidated consumption, is treated as a scaling market. According to Andrea Ferrari, executive manager of International Projects at ABF and Franchising Brasil, the Iberian Peninsula offers unique opportunities, and the mission seeks to generate concrete contacts and transmit legal and market knowledge to support consistent expansion. The advance, however, requires overcoming obstacles such as adapting products to European Union sanitary standards, complying with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and forming supply chains with approved suppliers.

Read more at:https://brasilinovador.com.br/internacionalizacao-de-franquias-brasileiras-mira-expansao-e-escala-na-espanha-e-em-portugal/