EMIKO JOZUKA
ISTANBUL – Hürriyet Daily News
Luiz Arthur Sousa is currently running a company called ‘English Affairs’ in Istanbul.
Former Brazilian economics student Luiz Artur Sousa decided to set up his own company with three interns from Australia, Mexico and Morocco after just three months working as an apprentice for AIESEC in Istanbul.
Newly established and now in its sixth month running, English Affairs seeks to provide better communication services and business opportunities between Turkey and the three countries represented by each partner of the company.
Sousa said his aim in setting up the company was based on a desire to improve communications and customized services between Turkey and other countries. He describes how the multinational members of the company are all able to strengthen the dynamic of the company by drawing on their own experiences in their respective countries and by sharing this knowledge.
“The relations between Turkey and Brazil and the rest of Latin America are growing a lot. Turkey is becoming a powerful country that represents Middle Eastern countries. There are a lot of opportunities here and I just wanted to give the idea of running a company a go,” he said.
Although Sousa entertained ideas of going to China and Poland, he was eventually swayed by Turkey’s rich history and cultural tradition.
Touching on the similarities between Brazilians and Turks, he said: “We are very friendly and receptive people. We open our homes easily to foreigners and people that we care about.”
Sousa said that before coming to Turkey, like other Latin Americans, he too had harbored some stereotypes about the country.
“We think of Turkey as a conservative and strict Muslim country. However, when you come here you see a completely different reality,” he said.
In coming to Turkey, Sousa has swapped “cafezinho” for “çay” and has frequent opportunities to tuck into döner kebabs, known more commonly as Greek barbecue in Brazil.
For the moment he seems bewitched by what he calls the “magical side of Istanbul” and seems set to stay.