By Brazil Stock Guide – Pernambucanas announced Marcelo Pimentel, the former chief executive officer of GPA (B3: PCAR3), as its new president, tasking him with restoring profitability and improving productivity across a network of more than 470 stores.
The appointments were reported Wednesday (29) by Broadcast, which interviewed board Chairman Carlos Henrique Bandeira de Mello Júnior. Ernane Abrahão will join as chief financial officer as the closely held retailer shifts its focus from expansion to cash generation and operational efficiency.
The new executives inherit a business that posted a R$465 million loss in 2025, its third consecutive annual deficit. The parent company also reported negative working capital of R$698 million.
PwC reiterated in March that there was material uncertainty over the company’s ability to continue as a going concern, underscoring the financial pressure facing the incoming leadership.
“We want to return Pernambucanas to a place it should never have left,” Bandeira de Mello told Broadcast.
Expansion Plan Strained Finances
Pernambucanas’ financial difficulties stem partly from an aggressive expansion between 2019 and 2023, when the company opened more than 200 stores.
Management expected the larger footprint to accelerate growth and pave the way for an initial public offering. The IPO failed to materialize, leaving the retailer with an operating structure that its finances could no longer comfortably support.
The company began an overhaul in 2024 covering operations, its balance sheet and corporate governance. Under Pimentel, the priority will be to extract better results from existing assets rather than accelerate store openings.
Pernambucanas operates more than 470 locations, almost all in leased properties. Improving margins, inventory management and store-level productivity will take precedence over adding floor space.
Bandeira de Mello said profitability and operational efficiency, rather than expansion at any cost, will guide the company’s new strategy.
Shareholder Accord Reshapes Governance
Pimentel’s arrival follows an overhaul of Pernambucanas’ ownership governance after decades of disputes among branches of the founding Lundgren family.
Those conflicts recently returned to public attention with Anita, a Globoplay documentary series about Anita Harley, a Lundgren family heir and former controlling shareholder.
A shareholder agreement signed in 2024 divided investors into six blocs with equal voting weight. Each group received the right to appoint one board member, limiting the concentration of influence that had fueled earlier disputes.
“When we sit at the table, no one speaks louder than anyone else,” Bandeira de Mello said in the Broadcast interview.
The board unanimously approved the appointments of Pimentel and Abrahão, a decision the chairman described as evidence that the new governance structure is working.
“That, to me, is clear proof that governance has changed at the company,” he said.
Pefisa Refocuses on Retail
The turnaround also extends to Pefisa, Pernambucanas’ financial-services arm. The company is ending partnerships with Autopec and Carmen Steffen while retaining its agreements with Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras, through Palmeiras Pay, and home-improvement retailer Leroy Merlin.
Pefisa will be repositioned to support retail sales and customer relationships, reversing an earlier strategy that sought to develop the unit as a stand-alone digital financial business.
“In the past, there was a lot of this fantasy of ‘I’m going to become a digital bank,’” Bandeira de Mello told Broadcast. “We are supporting players, not the main actor. Retail is the protagonist.”
Pimentel’s mandate includes strengthening liquidity and ending the string of losses while preserving Pernambucanas’ nationwide store network. He will also be responsible for turning the company’s governance changes and operational overhaul into sustainable earnings growth.
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