With the presence of 240 exhibiting brands, Vitoria Stone Fair Marmomac Latin America 2020 opened its doors on Tuesday. The opening ceremony was attended by important businessmen, politicians and authorities, such as the deputy governor of the State, Jacqueline Moraes; the president of the Brazilian Association of the Ornamental Stones Industry (Abirochas), Reinaldo Dantas; of secretaries of state; the director of the National Mining Agency (ANM), Débora Toci Puccini, among others.

The president of Sindirochas, Tales Machado, reinforced the growth of the sector in the last year, which exceeded the mark of US$ 1 billion in exports and highlighted the current moment. “The modernization and constant launching of materials made an expansion to new markets, and we reached the so-called third wave, in which the rocks are presented with a focus on adding value. Vitoria Stone Fair has a significant participation in the expansion of the sector around the world, as it is an integrating event that provides several links of opportunities in the productive sector, in consumption and in the specification of products, emphasizing the appreciation of the applicability of natural rocks ”.

The president of Abirochas spoke about the challenges of the segment, which include infrastructure, bureaucracy and legislation. “The 49th edition of a fair is in itself a reflection of the success of a business sector, which occurs at a time of expectation for the resumption of growth in the country, but also of challenges. We are in what we call the third export wave, which is to contribute for the Brazilian export industry to enter the construction and architecture market in the United States, inserting Brazil in the final product market ”.

Proof of this new moment is the exhibition Brazilian Stones Original Design, by Abirochas in partnership with the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil), which takes place in an exclusive space at the Vitoria Stone Fair with the presentation of works by 21 designers and architects and curatorship by Vivian Coser.

The president of the Federation of State Industries (Findes), Leonardo de Castro, spoke of the importance of the activity, which employs more than 25 thousand people, and of the entity’s support for the development of business.

The deputy governor emphasized the growth of mining in the state and placed the government as an ally to discuss taxes, the environment, infrastructure and dialogue with the federal government. She also highlighted the development of the business class, of architects and designers in strengthening the event.

Tributes and decree

During the ceremony, Sindirochas paid tribute to those involved in approving the enactment of Law 13,975 / 2000, which included the exploitation of natural stones in the licensing or authorization and concession regime.

On the occasion, the State Government also signed a decree extending until June 9, 2020 the payment of ICMS for operations carried out during the fair. The document was signed by the Secretary of Finance, Rogélio Amorim, and by Deputy Governor Jaqueline Moraes.