How Lojas Renner is Future-Proofing Brands in Fashion Retail

Renata Altenfelder is a global marketing executive with 25+ years of experience leading branding, innovation, and growth across fashion, technology, food, and beauty sectors. A strong advocate for diversity and women’s leadership, she drives purposeful impact through strategic vision, inclusion initiatives, and mentoring.

In a thought-provoking interaction with Global Woman Leader Magazine, Renata Altenfelder shares her insights on the evolving retail landscape and how Brazilian fashion retail giant, Lojas Renner SA (BVMF: LREN3) aligns with these evolutions.

She talks about how shifting consumer behaviors, digital acceleration, and brand saturation are reshaping brands. Renata also touches upon key themes such as building authentic brand identities, strengthening customer engagement, incorporating ESG and more.

To know more about Renata Altenfelder’s key insights on acing branding in today’s dynamic fashion retail landscape, read the following interview.

How has the evolving retail landscape, with shifting consumer behaviors and digital acceleration, reshaped the way brands build and sustain equity in today’s market?

Retail is undergoing a profound transformation, marked by the consolidation of the physical journey — where online and offline worlds seamlessly converge. The ubiquity of smartphones and social media has exposed consumers to an almost infinite range of brands and products, creating both opportunity and complexity. In this scenario, brands must act as allies and experience curators, guiding consumers through meaningful choices.

At Lojas Renner S.A., we respond by staying closely attuned to our customers’ evolving needs.

We continually reassess the shopping journey, implementing tools that integrate physical and digital environments, while enhancing processes to deliver a consistent, delightful experience across every channel.

We’ve also strengthened brand governance to ensure coherence, relevance and purpose at every touchpoint — reinforcing our role as a trusted partner, wherever the customer may be.

With rising competition and brand saturation, how can marketing leaders differentiate their portfolios while ensuring long-term relevance and emotional connection with consumers?

In a landscape increasingly shaped by micro trends and dynamic behaviours, staying attuned to your audience is essential. Relevance is built through active listening, consistent analysis, and the ability to translate insight into tangible action.

We’ve always prioritised closeness and mutual understanding, particularly with women — cultivating a relationship rooted in empathy and trust. A recent example is the Toda Brasileira Tem series, launched in partnership with Globo in 2024, which explored diverse female stories across Brazil. By showcasing how fashion empowers self-expression, the project strengthened our emotional connection with women and expanded representation in our narratives.

We also believe in the power of collaboration to unlock new creative frontiers.

Youcom — Renner’s youth fashion brand has partnered with voices aligned to its community, such as digital influencer Malu Camargo, co-creating collections that reflect genuine style and values.

When marketing aligns purpose with strategy, we foster connections that are meaningful and enduring.

In an era of fragmented media and declining consumer attention spans, which communication strategies can drive deeper engagement and brand loyalty?

This is a continual process, one that demands curiosity, courage to experiment, and above all, empathy. While influencer and creator partnerships remain core tools in brand communication, their success hinges on authenticity and alignment with brand purpose.

At Lojas Renner S.A., we prioritise emotional proximity and complicity in every interaction. We strive to deliver unique and memorable experiences from cultural activations and in-store events to bespoke content, whether self-produced or co-created with our partners.

Building initiatives that speak to our community and deliver genuine value is key. We’re not merely here to sell — we strive to be a meaningful part of our customers’ lives.

How should brands balance innovation and heritage leveraging past equity while adapting to emerging trends without diluting their core identity?

Successful brands remain true to their essence, values and the people who built their legacy. In a fast-changing world, brands must interpret new dynamics and expectations with honesty and adaptability.

Renner has always embraced a feminine soul and a genuine connection with women. Understanding their evolving needs and supporting them throughout their journey is central to our identity. While communication tools evolve, the brand’s essence must remain unshaken. That’s why we invest in clear brand strategies and robust governance to safeguard our principles at every stage.

Our latest movement, Dare to Be You, emerged from listening. We found that many women viewed fashion as a barrier rather than an enabler — so we invited them to use fashion as a tool for expressing their thoughts and emotions. Beyond curating fashion and lifestyle, we now inspire women to wear fashion to their advantage, with authenticity and confidence.

In 2025, Lojas Renner S.A. celebrates 60 years of innovation and growth — a milestone that coincides with the conclusion of our most ambitious investment cycle to date. These efforts have enhanced our agility and competitiveness, preparing us to evolve with consistency, empathy and courage for decades to come.

What are the blind spots in brand equity management today that organizations often overlook, and how can marketing leaders proactively address them to future-proof their brands?

One key blind spot is failing to keep pace with market shifts and behavioural change — resulting in missed opportunities and slow adaptation. Closing this gap requires structured processes to map trends, listen actively, and distil insights into strategic decisions.

Another critical oversight is chasing trends that conflict with a brand’s core values.

A brand mirrors its organisational culture, and misalignment can lead to internal friction and inauthentic customer experiences.

Additionally, many companies neglect to ensure consistent brand expression across every touchpoint. Focusing only on short-term performance is risky reputation and loyalty are built over time.

At Renner, we’ve reinforced our brand governance to better align culture, purpose and results. We’ve created metrics that balance immediate goals with long-term ambition, ensuring we build a resilient and future-ready brand.

As part of this evolution, we recently announced a new organisational structure — designed to boost efficiency, enhance governance, and foster integration, always keeping the customer at the heart of every decision.

With sustainability and purpose-driven branding gaining traction, how can brands authentically integrate these values without appearing opportunistic or performative?

A company should only take a stance on ESG if it is truly aligned with its values and strategic priorities. Being a responsible brand isn’t about ticking boxes or publishing reports, it’s about recognizing where we can improve and committing, transparently and tangibly, to change realities. This journey must be meaningful, consistent, and reflective of a deeper transformation.

At Lojas Renner S.A., this is a core commitment. In 2022, we launched our second cycle of public commitments, which guide our sustainability strategy through to 2030. We believe that a responsible approach to fashion starts with offering products and services that are more sustainable. Today, 8 out of 10 garments at Renner are made using materials or processes that reduce environmental impact.

One concrete example is Jeans for Change by Youcom, a pioneering programme that collects used denim and turns it into new pieces, encouraging circular fashion and conscious consumption. Over the past decade, it has become a symbol of our continued environmental responsibility.

This transformation is only possible because our leadership and teams are united around a common purpose: making fashion a force for good. For us, ESG is not just discourse — it is commitment, action, and legacy, built every day.