Chula Vista based Novo Brazil Brewing Company was among 15 San Diego regional local businesses selected to participate in the MetroConnect Program. World Trade Center San Diego selected the 15 companies in its sixth year of MetroConnect, a comprehensive export accelerator for San Diego businesses seeking global expansion. This program will work with Novo Brazil throughout 2022 in helping it to extend its global outreach of its beverage products.
Novo Brazil Brewing Director of Operations Hugo Thomaz said he was connected to MetroConnect by one of his customers, who is a manager at the program.
“He presented the program to us. He knows the company. He likes the products, and he said Novo would be a great fit,” he said. “He told us that applications opened in November 2021, and said if we were interested, to feel free to apply. We applied, and we were selected one of the 15 companies out of more than 200 San Diego based companies, and we were the only brewery selected this year. Coronado Brewing Company, our friends here, have participated in this program in the past.”
Thomaz said that the program offers many workshops, networking events, and support to participating companies on their global expansion.
“Novo Brazil, our beverage company, as we make beer, kombucha, hard seltzers, and continuing to increase our line of beverages is local to Chula Vista with four locations,” he said.
The main brewery, where everything is produced is in Eastlake. Novo Brazil has a large restaurant for 1,000 people at the Otay Ranch Mall, a tap room in National City and another in Ocean Beach. Novo is expanding this year with three more locations in San Diego County and expanding globally with the support of this program, said Thomaz.
“We already do exportation and work with 12 countries, but this only represents about one percent of total revenues,” he said. “It is still extremely small, and we want to increase our global presence. We know that there are important markets internationally, and we want to increase sales and have our products in those international markets. Some of those markets are Switzerland, England, Netherlands, Croatia, and Japan. We are already in some of those markets, but we want to expand to China, Australia, as they are huge markets that we want to be in.”
Thomaz said the program is already helping with access to vital information, alcohol regulations on specific countries as there are different laws. It is also receiving translation services which will allow labels and marketing materials translated to the many languages that it needs.
“At the opening event, we were connected to the Tijuana Economic Development Center,” he said. “We already wanted to do more business south of the border, but we never did. But we have this great connection through the program, and they are coming here, and we want to do business with them in purchasing ingredients, packaging, hiring people from there who are allowed to work here in the U.S. So, it is not only selling our products in other markets, but also conducting other business that will bring benefits and advantages to the company.”
Thomaz said Novo Brazil is growing rapidly, and that this program is helping the company to expand further and faster.
“We are a Brazilian owned company,” he said. “I am Brazilian. We have many Brazilians working here. But we are still a local Chula Vista company, and we are investing a lot right here in this area.”
For more information about Novo Brazil, visit www.novobrew.com.
