Francisco Cabbani moved to Miami when he was just 19 years old. A few years earlier, the crisis of 2001 had led his father to go into exile in that city and when he finished high school, he began to work with him from Buenos Aires, exporting clothes for the store that his father had set up in the famous Dolphin Mall, until he decided to settle permanently with him.
He started as a salesperson in the store and worked his way up earning the minimum wage until he became the manager of the business. The multi-brand also had its own designs and a large part of its stock was imported from Argentina, where they bought leading brands such as Kosiuko and Bensimon.
"From 2005 to 2010, 50 percent of the garments were produced in Argentina, because with the devaluation it was very competitive. Over time, Argentina stopped being competitive and we stopped producing there. Now we buy from American companies that they import their collection from Asia and we put together our own collection," explains Cabbani.
But a twist of fate brought them back to the country, at least for a while. At the end of 2013, when it was time for them to renew their contract at the mall, they saw how the rents had suffered a 100 percent increase due to the rise of European brands that were settling in that country.
Cabbani closed the business and left for Buenos Aires to continue working in the textile industry, importing bags and jackets. But he did not count on the changes in the rules of the game in the country: "When I placed the order the dollar was $16 and when I received it it was $45. I understood that the rules were not clear: I sold everything and went back to Miami. I had bet strong, but I was used to working in Miami. Here nobody gives you anything, you have to roll up your sleeves and really work hard, but the results come," he reflects.
your current project
Mikino is his new project that opened in November 2019, also in the Dolphin shopping mall. "The pandemic caught us 5 months after opening, but we were able to make a good deal with the mall and we got through the pandemic. We consolidated the business with a great work team, " explains the founder of the project, which already bills US$2 million a year.
In the pandemic, Miami shopping malls closed for two months and when they returned, at first it was with reduced hours. There was almost no international tourism, but Cabbani assures that due to the economic aid from the government there was a lot of internal tourism that saved those businesses.
The businessman assured that in the United States a well-functioning 150/250m2 store can have an annual turnover of over US$3 million. That is why today all the energy is put into his unisex store with a " very Miami " proposal, as he himself defines it. "They are garments with brightness, embroidery, details, colors, for an audience that is encouraged by everything."
The clothes are designed for the night in Miami. Even in his store you can find Ricardo Fort's favorite brands, which the millionaire bought in South Beach stores.
In addition, he is working on the launch of his own brand, Franka, with which he plans to open 3 more stores and expand with an e-commerce.
Argentines in Miami
In a city with such a strong Latino community, Cabbani says that Argentines take their place. "On a commercial level, for having worked very hard from the beginning, things were giving me and I didn't have so many complications, because I left everything to consolidate the business. The average Argentine is more qualified than the average of other countries of the region and when they arrive the possibilities are enormous in all areas", he comments.
From his place, he notes that there is a new wave of Argentines settling in Miami and that they respond to an upper-class profile that invests in the city (especially in gastronomy) unlike in other years, such as during the 2001 crisis, where people who bet their last savings to get ahead.
In addition, he comments that the city is demanding many workers for commercial premises and that draws attention. "There is a great demand for the premises as never seen in 20 years. All gastronomic businesses or shopping centers are in need of labor . We are looking for personnel for the growth of the company, we have advertisements in different portals and almost no people appear", concludes.
(This note was published in the printed edition of Apertura magazine)
