Além da Trend Club: how a book club and networking group brought together more than 700 women

Picture moving to a new city as an adult and having to build friendships from scratch. That was the reality for Lene Matos, a 32-year-old copywriter, who turned a personal need into a meeting point for other women. After relocating from Belo Horizonte to São Paulo, she set up a book club as a way to meet new people. The idea expanded, added a networking arm, and became Além da Trend Club - a collective that now brings together more than 700 women in a WhatsApp group. Joining is free: you simply use the link available in the group’s Instagram bio.

A city move that became the starting point

Lene says the concept came soon after she arrived in São Paulo. Alongside wanting to make new friends, she had long wanted to create a book club, so she decided to combine both goals.

“ I created the book club as soon as I moved to São Paulo, because I needed to make friends.”

To find participants, Lene drew on her professional background in social media and put money into adverts. That approach ended up attracting a large number of women working in communications, which created room for a second initiative within the collective.

“ And then I thought, I’m going to create a networking club as well so we can talk about it. So it became the book club and the networking club.”

That is how the two main pillars of Além da Trend took shape: one focused on literary meet-ups and the other on professional connections.

A network with more than 700 women

Networking initially leaned more towards communications professionals, but as the group grew it began to include women from different fields. Today, as well as sharing job opportunities, the space allows members to showcase their services, find potential clients, and exchange professional experiences.

One example involved Lene’s own psychologist, who reached her through the group. That same professional also hired a social media specialist she met within the community.

“ Anyway, the idea is to build a real network of women who help each other, who promote their services and who buy each other’s services.”

The way the community works has also created opportunities beyond straightforward promotion. According to Lene, it is common for participants to use the group to ask questions, share experiences, and seek recommendations from women who have been through similar situations.

Lene’s own path helps explain why this kind of exchange matters. She trained in Law and began her career as a solicitor, before switching into communications. At the time, she felt the lack of a network that could support her through the transition.

“ And I remember that when I made that career change, I didn’t know many people in the field and I was completely lost.”

Now, she receives messages from women who want to understand her experience better and explore possible routes for changing careers.

Book club reaches its 12th meet-up

While the networking side has developed into a professional support network, the book club has kept its original aim: creating in-person gatherings built around literature. The project recently reached its 12th meet-up and is already choosing the next book.

Choices about the titles, times, and dates are made collectively through polls in the WhatsApp group.

Growth, however, has brought organisational challenges. What began as smaller meet-ups in São Paulo cafés has started drawing dozens of participants.

The scale of the latest gathering made that clear. Held at Futuro Refeitório, the meet-up welcomed 56 women and filled the venue.

With so many attendees, Lene has had to reconsider the set-up for future sessions. A café that worked for smaller groups may no longer be enough to accommodate dozens of readers.

The plan now is to find a structure that preserves the very thing the club was built for: a place to talk, meet other women, and share an experience around a book - ideally with coffee and food.