About

In the world of fine fragrances getting things right in Latin America is hugely important. Brazil is the largest market for fine fragrances in the world and the third largest market globally for beauty products, while many other countries across the region offer huge potential for growth. For S&P 500 constituent International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) – a global leader in the creation of flavours, fragrances and ingredients for the consumer sector – having a lawyer who understands the region and its commercial dynamics is key to commercial success. Emir Calluf Filho, IFF’s legal director for Latin America, was nominated by law firm partners in both the US and Brazil for his ability to find novel ways of structuring commercial agreements. And in the industry in which IFF operates, this ability to think laterally is very important. ‘For the most part we are selling products that are hard to imagine unless you feel them, taste them or smell them’, says Calluf. ‘And a large part of what we are selling is creativity, fantasy and other subjective items. That means the day-to-day sales process is very different, and of course it can be hard to capture all the nuances of these relationships in an agreement. But that’s the beauty of it – the executives from our customers and suppliers, along with our own executives, are much more likely to be taking a view on the subjective qualities of the product they are buying and it’s a business that has a lot of trust. If we are creating something that will become a major customer’s best-selling product then we have to find ways of working together which allow both sides to understand the other’s approach. That makes it very challenging but also incredibly interesting to me as a lawyer.’ Calluf had previously run IFF’s Latin America legal operations from Brazil but a 2016 move to New York, which also saw him take on additional responsibility for corporate matters, moved him into a more strategic role within the business, including as part of IFF’s Latin America regional committee. ‘Being based in Brazil of course placed me closer to a very important market, but I also found that I was getting heavily involved in the country-specific items. While the move to the US has expanded my role away from purely Latin American matters, I now find it is far easier to divide my time among all the countries in the region, and to understand how this region fits in with our wider corporate strategy.’ He is supported by two lawyers based in Brazil who continue to oversee day-to-day legal matters on his behalf. Nominators drew attention to Calluf’s ‘incredibly important role in [IFF’s] success in the region’, but Calluf himself reserves praise for the company’s creative area: perfumers and flavorists. ‘They are really the rock stars of our world. If a customer says they want a product for people in a specific age range with particular notes or taste, we rely on them to show their genius. However, novel products are increasingly hard to find and the industry relies on commercially complex relationships to thrive. I am very proud that, by helping to maintain these relationships, I can play my own part in bringing fragrances and flavors to life.’