In 2025, the German company, Merz Aesthetics, will complete 10 years in Brazil. And, for the last four years, at the head of the national operation since January 2020, has been Giovana Pacini, an executive who had already worked in other companies in the sector before joining Merz, in the marketing chair, just under a year before.
“I took this position [de country manager] with insecurity. Every woman has a bit of imposter syndrome,” she says. The biggest challenge in the position, at first, would be managing beyond products. “I would have to manage costs, payroll, logistics and regulatory. I had to learn quickly. I ‘gave it’ to the CFO, who was also in the transition process, and we still need to do this virtually, with the arrival of the pandemic”, says Pacini.
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Since then, the company has more than doubled its revenue and size. It then had 98 employees, compared to the current 270. “As I grew, I began to understand that my challenge was much bigger than managing finances, HR and logistics: it was managing people”, he says. For Pacini, the biggest difficulty in leadership is understanding that each person has a different way of working. “A leader needs to give time and autonomy to his followers, and trust in the solutions they bring”, he says.
For the executive, the biggest mistake leaders make is being afraid of very good professionals because they think they will steal their “position”. “I want to hire people better than me because I know that I will only grow if there is someone to take my current place. So I need to train, give space and defend these people”, he says.
She herself, before occupying today’s position, recalls a moment in which she was defended by her direct leader in a very symbolic way. In a meeting with international partners, the executive was determined to convey her point of view – correct, in fact. Given her attitude, she was classified as a “bossy” by one of her colleagues. “She’s not a bossy, she’s a leader,” her direct manager responded at the time. “This defense may seem very simple, but it made a lot of difference to how I saw myself. And I try to reproduce this with my team members”, he says.
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Personal victory
Merz’s worldwide revenue is measured in euros. Even so, behind only the United States and South Korea. But it wasn’t always like that.
In 2019, national unity did not reach breakeven and considered closing operations here. At the time, responsible for marketing, Pacini saw an opportunity to reposition one of the company’s main products. “This product was understood as a filler – which will fill in a wrinkle and add volume – but, after studying, I saw that it was a collagen bio-stimulator”, he recalls. One is not better or worse than the other, but the products are essentially different. Therefore, repositioning could bring a better understanding of the functions and properties of the merchandise.
Pacini then began a crusade to reposition the item. “I spoke with the medical field and we understand the need to train healthcare professionals to use it properly,” he says. Since then, the training of healthcare professionals has become one of the company’s flagships and, in 2024 alone, at the time of this interview, more than 6 thousand healthcare professionals had been trained.
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The repositioning caused a turnaround within the company and outside it. “Eight years ago, before the change, 1,500 units were sold per month. Now, there are more than 60,000”, he states. Since then, sales have grown by double digits every year.
From the door inwards, the impact was on the lives of many employees. The item in question is manufactured in the United States, in a specific plant. Before the change in positioning, the factory was on the verge of closing because sales did not justify a manufacturing unit of that size. But its success in Brazil drove a change in positioning in other markets and its sales multiplied around the world. “Selling has changed globally. For Merz, in Brazil, a company that did not reach the breakeven and was considering leaving the local market, this was a big change. Now, we are the third largest country and global decisions are made taking our market into account”, he says.
For the executive, this was one of her greatest personal victories. “After having the courage to leave a company where I had stability and give up a position of comfort, I had the opportunity to transform this company into a major player. But, of course, the merit is not mine alone. I didn’t do anything alone”, she says, while pointing to people on her team. The response of a true leader.
