As a founding member of ECCIA – the European Cultural and Creative Industries Alliance – Walpole’s work reaches far beyond British shores. Composed of seven European member organisations in Italy, France, Spain, Sweden, Portugal, Germany and, of course, the UK, ECCIA's members join forces to represent the luxury sector’s shared values in Brussels at the European Commission. Our latest interview series introduces you to the CEO of each ECCIA member and brings you the key details that every high-end brand should know about the luxury sector in the country they represent.
For the next instalment in the series, we head to Lisbon to speak with Francisco Carvalheira, CEO of Laurel in Portugal...
Walpole: Can you tell us about your association?
Francisco Carvalheira: Laurel is a non-profit association with the purpose of defending and promoting Portuguese 'luxury and excellence brands' with the motto "Portuguese Know-How". Our association was established in November 2019 with 10 founding brands. Due to the pandemic, we were forced to postpone the formal launch of the association, which then took place on 14th October 2021 at the Ritz Hotel in Lisbon, with the presence of eighty-five Portuguese brands. We are still very young, but we take great pride in the work we are doing to promote Portuguese brands internationally. The world wants to know our country and the very best that it produces, as evidenced by the tremendous success of Portuguese tourism in recent years.
How many members are there in your organisation, and what are the requirements of membership?
Currently, we have 40 Portuguese brands as Associated Brands, two Ambassadors, five Honorary Members, and six Institutional Entities. The first and most important requirement is to be a Portuguese brand with a foundation rooted in Portuguese identity and know-how. Naturally, there is also an analysis of how the brand is developed and worked on, ensuring that the techniques and processes used in production align with our guidelines concerning sustainability, both from an ecological perspective and in terms of social inclusion. It's crucial that the companies have the desire to pass knowledge on to future generations and the motivation to perpetuate the best of what our country has to offer. What we produce is an integral part of our national identity, and it is essential not to forget this.
What are the qualities and characteristics of your country’s luxury sector that make it unique in the world?
Above all, it's uniqueness. Portugal is the European country with the oldest borders, existing as a nation for nearly 900 years. Throughout history, we have explored the seas in search of everything and nothing. We were pioneers of globalisation, present in every corner of our planet, which has made our experience as a people truly extraordinary – hence our motto, "Portuguese Know-How." In a world where everything is becoming increasingly similar, where differences seem to vanish before our eyes, what is Portuguese remains Portuguese. Our brands are Portuguese, producing Portuguese products – and that is becoming increasingly rare.
What would you say the primary talking point is amongst the luxury sector in your country right now?
Today, Portugal is recognised for its excellent quality of life and safety, with tourism accounting for 15% of the Portuguese GDP. Along with other luxury-related sectors like textiles, footwear industry, wines & olive oils, ceramics, crystal & glass, jewellery, luxury goods represent more than 25% of our exports.
Portugal has achieved a high level of production quality, manufacturing for many European luxury brands, and this has sparked a significant interest in creating more 'luxury and excellence brands' with a Portuguese design, innovation, and the DNA of "Portuguese Know-How", creating a distinctiveness. This is our challenge – to be innovative and trendsetting, paving the way for the creation of Portuguese Luxury, accepted and recognised by international markets.
What is the biggest challenge to the growth of the luxury industry in your country, both domestically and internationally?
A luxury brand takes time to be created, accepted, and recognised. Based on these important points, we feel the need to create a new mentality and philosophy, leveraging what we are today – a country with high-quality production – and embark on a path that transforms the current reality of manufacturing and exporting into a future of branding and internationalisation. This is a medium to long-term process that demands courage and involves changing mindsets, capacity for investment, and consistent production.
There is a significant shortage of qualified individuals, which makes training and programs to attract young people to professions related to "Portuguese Know-How" of utmost importance. We are working to create programs that counteract these trends, involving all of society: parents and children, brands, schools, and government entities.
We have to look to the future and the sustainability of what we produce. Being a people with a great penchant for developing new projects and a wide openness to technology, this is an enormous advantage that we must use in our creativity, combined with "Portuguese Know-How". Today, luxury looks at what it consumes.
What are the calendar highlights of that your company organises throughout the year?
We are still very young, but highly active. Our strategy has involved developing events in two distinct directions. Firstly, providing the necessary tools for brands and individuals who work to build luxury and excellence brands through partnerships with Portuguese universities (Universidade Católica Portuguesa, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, and ISEG).
Secondly, bringing international brands and organisations to Portugal. Storytelling is one of the most powerful and efficient ways of learning. We have had Altagamma, Walpole, Harrods, Glion, Simon Kucher, and others come to visit us in Portugal. We are working towards 2024 with different events highly connected to innovation, ESG and Design and Creativity Management.
What has been the proudest moment for you in your tenure as CEO?
At the national level, it was on 14th October 2021 at the official launch of Laurel at the Ritz Hotel in Lisbon. We had 85 brands present and a lecture on luxury given by the philosopher Gilles Lipovetsky, and Sérgio Rebello, Professor of International Finance at the Kellogg School of Management – all of this happening during the pandemic.
At the international level, it was our membership to ECCIA in 2022.
In March 2023, we had two conferences in Lisbon with Altagamma, featuring Stefania Lazzaroni, and with Walpole, featuring Helen Brocklebank and Michael Ward. These were a huge success and so deeply appreciated.
Which person in your country’s luxury sector inspires you – and why?
I admire any Portuguese entrepreneur who has the courage and audacity to build and internationalise a Portuguese luxury brand based on the "Portuguese Know-How" that supports our fantastic Portuguese artisans.
There is a Portuguese Architect, David Vieira, who fights to maintain the art and tradition of Portuguese Naval Carpentry – perhaps the oldest Portuguese savoir faire. With six centuries of existence, this craftsmanship is what allowed our nation to navigate the oceans, and that made us a people with such a varied and rich culture today. David is an inspiration to all of us.
Why is an organisation like ECCIA important?
ECCIA has two significant roles for Laurel. Firstly, it allows us to be part of an alliance that represents the culture and tradition of the best European craftsmanship, preserving it so it doesn't disappear. Secondly, it facilitates the sharing of knowledge, ideas, promotion, and exchange of projects among ECCIA brands. Together, we are stronger, and the synergy of cooperation is greater than the sum of its parts.
> Find out more about all the member organisations within ECCIA and its work here
> For more information on Walpole's international work and ECCIA, please contact Charlotte Keesing on [email protected]
