Shopping & Souvenirs

So here’s the insider info on shopping in Sao Paulo:

This city offers a pretty extensive and dynamic array of choices when it comes to shopping, from high end boutique stores to small, local craft shops. If you are looking for the high end shopping destinations, Avenida Paulista has some very expensive retailers. Near the avenue is the Jardins area, very well known for its high end boutiques and very impressive, delicious restaurants. Rua Augusta and Rua Haddock Lobo are very popular shopping streets, filled with a number of international brands catered to expensive clothing, jewelry, and gifts. In downtown Sao Pualo, there is a local market selling lavish, handcrafted items such as purses, belts, etc.

Me standing outside of Shopping Paulista, near Avenida Paulista

There are a number of shopping malls that includes many boutique shops and gourmet dining. Some of the malls I recommend are Shopping Paulista, Shopping Ibirapueara, Shopping Morumbi, and Shopping Patio Higienopolis. Stores are shopping malls include clothing, shoes, accessories, jewelry, bookstores, electronics, cell phones, and pet stores. Also many nice restaurants and cafes are located inside.

If you’re looking for something specific, there are certain streets dedicated to a certain industry. One I’m familiar with is Rua 25 de Marco, which is a huge commerce hub, especially for electronics. This street has probably the most lowest prices relatively in comparison to other parts of Sao Paulo, selling computers, TV’s, iPods, calculators, watches, etc. However, it’s also flooded with mock products and illegal imitations, so buy with caution.

If you’re looking for an Asian market, go over to the Liberdade district, a heavily Japanese-dominated neighborhood, boasts as a popular destination for Asian influenced trinkets and goods. On Sunday, there is a fair that goes on where Asian-influenced cuisine can be tasted and many artisans set up hundreds of booths selling handcrafted items.

Another fair to be considered would be the one located at Praca da Republica, it has one of the best handcrafted textiles from local artisans, and also original artworks from local painters and artists.

What should you bring back as souvenirs? That’s seriously up to you, but I’d suggest you include a pair of Havaianas flip-flops, they’re so comfortable and you’ll have more choices in design for a cheaper price here in Brazil than anywhere else in the world.

Enjoy!

Pros & Cons of Outsourcing to Brazil

Came across this article, it’s really focused on the IT industry but after reading through it, you could definitely apply it to other business areas. It offers great insight on the business culture. 

3 Tips Americans Should Know Before Doing Business In Brazil

Alright, haven’t posted for awhile. Been working and crazy busy. But after a few business dinners, chatting about random stuff, football being the most popular subject, I’ve noticed 3 things I want to share about conducting business in Brazil, or at least in Sao Paulo.

1. It’s the Brazil Way, not the American Way!

We all know Brazil is an emerging country, however business leaders here get the attitude from Americans that they can come into town, set up shop, and do things as they go. In reality, this doesn’t work out. You really have to spend time to truly grasp the business models, ethics, and practices that are already in existence in Brazil. And it is in many ways different than back home in the US.

2. Develop relationships!

Brazilians want to get to know you as a person before they consider doing business. Why? Simple, they want to know who they’re working with. Imagine getting married to someone you just met, you have no idea who they are, and now you’re stuck with them. Success really depends on your ability to develop and sustain relationships with your business partners; and these relationships carry beyond the office. Brazilians are very social, once Friday comes around, instead of going home and most likely getting stuck in traffic, feel free to go straight to a bar to relax and catch chat with your co-workers or business partners. This is a great way to build trust and meaningful collaboration.

3. The emerging C-class!

Brazil is an extremely diverse nation. But the social structure in Brazil is much different than the US, people are mostly categorized into 5 different economic classes: A, B, C, D, and E (the A-Class being the wealthiest and the E-Class being the poorest). The middle C-class is the primary reason for Brazil’s emerging economic growth. This large part of the population is now emerging as a large demographic purchasing power. Affecting many areas of Brazil’s economy, in industries such as retail, banking, housing, and the increase of small/medium businesses.

Just tips on what I learned on doing business here! 

Brazil and other BRIC Nations stepping up to Financial Crisis

I haven’t posted for such a long time, been so busy over here but I had a debate with my friend back in the States on how Brazil is going to be a global player. He disagrees but I believe this article pretty much proves my point. Brazil is going to allocate $350 billion dollars in foreign reserves for the Eurozone financial crisis, enough said! 

Brazilian Manners

It’s been a week since I’ve set foot in Sao Paulo and I want to point the surprisingly pleasant manners that Brazilians have. First off, greetings such as hellos, goodbyes, and good afternoon (Oi, Tchau, and Boa Tarde respectively) are very commonly heard, even among complete strangers. For example, at my apartment complex, every time I step into an elevator with someone already inside, they will say Oi to me and Tchau during departure. I once had a short random conversation with someone about the Sao Paulo Corinthians and Rio de Janeiro’s Flamengos soccer match yesterday in the elevator, later found out from my cousin that it’s pretty normal for strangers to strike up random conversations. Now I understand why Brazilians are referred to as very warm and friendly people. Much different than the US, I wouldn’t say we Americans are cold cause I think we’re pretty polite, but it’s definitely a small cultural difference.

When being introduced to other people, there’s always a smile and a greeting. In male to female interactions, there would often be a simple kiss on the cheek, something I was caught completely off guard. But don’t get carried away thinking that they have a crush on you, a kiss on the cheek is very common in these types of situations.

“Licenca” (the shortened form of “Com licenca” for Excuse me) is very commonly heard among everyone in any situation. It’s very common to hear someone saying licenca during crowded areas such as the subway. Back in the US, at least in my opinion, people are polite but in places such as the airport, subway, metro buses, and anywhere with claustrophobic conditions for that matter, you’re lucky if someone even bothers to say excuse me after you’re pushed out of the way.

So these are just some of the minor differences in everyday manners that I’ve experienced. Remember to greet people or you’ll come off as a rude individual.

In the US, we’re associate graffiti more with vandalism rather than another form of cultural expression. Graffiti in Sao Paulo, Brasil where I took some of these photos is more like urban art. Since most of us are more familiar with the large-letter tags, although there is a lot in Sao Paulo but graffiti art here is much more prevalent; where abstract, surreal, psychedelic, and geometric paintings colorfully co-exist. You only need to drive a few blocks and you’ll encounter its thriving graffiti culture. It really gives off a creative vibe around the city, Sao Paulo is definitely its own dynamic melting pot of Latin America. Since traffic jams are common and really frustrating, it’s nice to look out your window and see a nice piece of urban mural.

Retail Details

Last Tuesday, Aug. 9th, a local Brazilian financial newspaper reported Wal-Mart Stores, Inc (NYSE: WMT) is in talks to acquire the Brazilian unit of French retailer Carrefour (CA.FR). Now the details of the deal, such as the price of acquisition, haven’t been provided yet, but sources say Wal-Mart has brought in UBS (NYSE: UBS) for the talks. 

Now what does this really mean? Brazil is currently the 7th largest consumer market. Now factor in the rapid rise of the Brazilian middle class, declining inflation rate, the ease to extend credit (20% annual growth), job growth (6.2% unemployment rate), and the growing demand of non-durable consumer goods (consumer confidence of 5.4%), there is a huge growth of sales within the retail sector. Among the wide variety of stores, electronics, pet shops, and even e-retailing, supermarkets account for the majority of the Brazilian retail industry.  According to Bloomberg.com, Brazil now leads the top global markets for retail expansion. So for foreign investors, this opens a door full of opportunities. 

Currently, Wal-Mart holds the 3rd largest retailer in Brazil, following Carrefour in second and market leader Grupo Pão de Acucar.

Wal-Mart’s Brazilian Profile:

  • Penetrated Brazilian market in 1995
  • Total Retail Units as of June 30, 2011: 484
  • Wal-Mart Supercenter and Sam’s Club (74 stores)
  • Todo Dia, a neighborhood-friendly store for Brazilians, a strategy called small box retailing (133 stores)
  • Bompreco, an acquired Brazilian unit from Ahold, a Dutch retailer back in March 2004 (99 stores)
  • Sonae, an acquired Brazilian unit from Sonae, a Portuguese retailer back in December 2005 (178 stores)

As you can see, Wal-Mart is increasing its Brazilian market share through building up their successful strategy of small box retailing and various acquisitions. Carrefour had more than 500 stores at the end of 2010. If Wal-Mart were to acquire Carrefour’s Brazilian unit, it would become the largest and leading retailer in Brazil. 

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Sources:

http://investinbrazil.biz/industry/retail-market/retail-market-industry-brazil

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/wal-mart-in-talks-to-buy-carrefour-brazil-unit-2011-08-09

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-08-11/brazilian-june-retail-sales-rose-0-2-from-month-earlier.html

http://walmartstores.com/AboutUs/259.aspx?p=246

http://walmarthelp.com/wal-mart-is-said-to-explore-bid-for-carrefour’s-brazilian-retail-business-bloomberg/

Updated: Aug. 19, 2011

CIA World Factbook

Awesome resource if you want a concise and general overview of Brazil rather than Googling through amounts of data and facts. Wikipedia works but it takes time to read through all that literature. CIA World Factbook has updated information on pretty much any country, as well as a wealth of facts and figures.

3rd Largest PC Market

 

With reports of the PC market underperforming due to over-saturation and intense competition, many firms are considering looking elsewhere to boost revenues and profits. And that place is Brazil, now considered as the 3rd Largest PC Market in the world, following the US (#1) and China (#2). Investors and financial analysts are concerned about the slowing market for PCs, putting some blame on Apple’s iPad and other factors. However, in July, Intel (NAS: INTC) released their earnings report with better-than-expected results and outlook.

CEO Paul Otellini describes that Intel has this “channel revenue” where their channel sales grew by 17%, that helped the company’s PC division grow by 11% during the quarter because demand for PCs remain healthy in developing countries such as Brazil. Latin America as a whole has seen a 12% growth in the PC market. The way channel revenue works is through indirect sales channels to smaller companies that make PCs with lesser-known brands geared toward specific markets.

The rise of the PC market in Brazil can give credit to Positivo Informática  (BM&F Bovespa: POSI3), a homegrown brand that nobody has heard of outside of Latin America. But in department stores where the Brazilian middle class do their shopping, Positivo has the largest share of the retail market (29.9% as of 2009), and sells more computers (16.1% of total PC sales) than the next three players combined. 

With a growing middle class, there are a lot of families looking to buy their first computer. To gain an understanding of the PC market, unlike the United States, where a family may have multiple desktops/laptops, one for Dad, Mom, Junior, and little Mary, the PC is shared by the entire Brazilian household, rather than it being a personal device. 

Positivo is 10th largest computer manufacturer in the world. But why hasn’t other manufacturers such as Dell and HP been able to imitate the same success as the largest manufacturer in Latin America? A factor to consider stems from the Brazilian government enacting policies creating a favorable environment for Brazilian companies. Positivo enjoys a tax structure that only requires them to pay 2.75% while foreign PC manufacturers pay an average of 43% in taxes. This is a significant competitive advantage and one where Positivo expects the Brazilian government maintaining in the future.

The cheapest of Positivo’s desktops are easily affordable through financing of 50 Reals, or $30 Dollars a month. To illustrate who are buying up PCs, construction workers and those who clean houses can buy a computer for their family. As you can see, the bulk of the PC market remains with the growing middle class.

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Sources:

http://allthingsd.com/20110720/intel-ceo-were-big-in-brazil-and-lots-of-other-places/

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-9920786-56.html

Updated: Aug. 9, 2011

Source: allthingsd.com