The historic brand Pampero plans to open 30 new stores in Argentina.

In an economic scenario that, after years of stagnation, begins to transform under the successful leadership of Javier Milei, the historic Argentine brand Pampero is decisively betting on growth and regional expansion.

Under the leadership of Gabriel "Gabo" Nazar, a businessman with a solid track record and founder of Cardón, Pampero plans to open 30 new stores in 2025, reaching 200 locations across the country by the end of 2026, thus strengthening its presence not only in the domestic market but also abroad.

From difficult times to productive rebirth

Founded in 1914, Pampero was once synonymous with Creole tradition and quality in workwear. However, the decline of decades of poor management and suffocating regulations led it to a critical period. The sale of Alpargatas to the Brazilian group Camargo Correa at the end of the last century marked a stage of neglect. It was only in 2012, when Nazar acquired Pampero for 30 million pesos after an extensive regulatory process, that the brand found renewed momentum.

Today, in an increasingly favorable economic environment for the private sector, Pampero accelerates its reconversion and expansion: it already has 120 active locations, to which it will add 30 new ones this year (with imminent openings in Azul, Pergamino, and Junín) and another 50 in 2026.

"Despite the enormous difficulties of the Argentine economy, we were able to build a strong framework to undertake an expansion plan of this magnitude", highlighted Nazar, making it clear how the new economic climate enables visionary entrepreneurs to sustain long-term projects.

The heart of this ambitious expansion is the franchise model, a scheme that Nazar successfully applied in Cardón and the empanada chain El Noble (sold in 2016). Each new location requires a minimum investment of 100,000 dollars, a figure justified by the power of a "multitarget" brand that targets all market segments. "In a small city, Pampero could have two locations; in a medium one, between four and five; and in a large one, more", explained the businessman.

Pampero currently produces 400,000 footwear units and 5 million clothing items per year, in partnership with 47 licensees and 40 industrial plants strategically distributed in provinces like La Rioja, Catamarca, and Chaco. A clear example of the productive federalism that the country is strongly promoting today.

The brand also knew how to read the changes of the times. Since 2024, Pampero initiated a reconversion that expanded its offering: it now offers five differentiated lines—Industrial, Rural, Adventure, Urban, and Children's—in addition to traditional products of Creole culture such as mates, thermoses, straws, yerbas (launched in 2021) and home decoration items. Today its catalog includes more than 5,000 products.

Meanwhile, the new context of commercial openness allowed Pampero to import disposable products from China, such as gloves and eye protectors, which are not manufactured on a large scale in Argentina, without giving up its central commitment: "The production of clothing and safety footwear will continue to be local, but the opening of imports is an opportunity and a challenge to integrate into the world", stated Nazar, celebrating a scenario that bets on real competitiveness.

Pampero already has nine branches in Uruguay and a solid operation in Paraguay, where it also established its own production plant. Now it is preparing its entry into Brazil, Bolivia, and Chile, consolidating a regional growth strategy based on Argentine quality.

"We set up a plant in Paraguay to decouple external growth from internal fluctuations", explained Nazar, referring to an Argentina that, under Milei, is working to definitively end cycles of instability. In Córdoba—the nerve center of the textile sector—the brand strengthens its growth with Productos Nacionales SA, from the Sahade family, as distributor and licensee for Córdoba and La Rioja.

Despite a drop in textile consumption in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023, Pampero not only resisted but capitalized on the opportunities: it recently opened a 400 m² store in Santa Fe and Callao, and another in the prestigious Galerías Pacífico in Buenos Aires, occupying spaces left by international brands that abandoned the country during the crisis years.

The projection is strong: to triple the turnover of 200 million pesos from 2013, consolidating Pampero as a reference of the new national industry.

"Argentina will belong to those who stay," Nazar stated, summarizing the spirit of an era that, finally, begins to leave the shadows behind to open up to a future of genuine growth.