International Business Times - February 28, 2012
Exporting to Brazil could be a hot idea for U.S. companies.
In 2010, Brazil's economy grew at a blistering 7.5 percent annual rate. In the third quarter of 2011, Brazil's year-over-year growth rate slowed to 2.1 percent.
Still, compared to the U.S. and many other developed countries, Brazil's market is booming and Western exporters are increasingly looking to profit from this growth.
"There is a 'buying culture' here in Brazil," said Brooke Christian, Senior Vice President of Global Sales at TransPerfect, a global language service provider.
Brazilian consumers are growing both in numbers and in wealth, said Brooke.
For example, as more Brazilians join the ranks of the upper class, the market for foreign luxury goods has boomed.
To sell in Brazil, most luxury goods exporters have to set up shop there physically because of service and image considerations, said Christian.
However, there is also growth in lower-end consumer goods exports, which is fueling the Brazilian e-commerce industry.
Christian listed the apparel market as an example of a hot opportunity for exporters. The sportswear market could be especially lucrative in light of Brazil's hosting of the World Cup in 2014 and Summer Olympics in 2016.
These two highly-anticipated events - besides spurring related consumption like sportswear - will themselves generate direct demand for infrastructure building and other related preparations.
The government of Brazil will be a big customer. A list of its needs for the 2016 Summer Olympics, for example, can be found here.
Businesses in Brazil - whether they are servicing the needs of the government for the Olympics and the World Cup or the needs of the country's growing consumer base - are also prime targets for U.S. exporters.
In this (b2b) space, it helps to establish oneself as a leader in the field that is capable of handling high volume, said Christian.
That is precisely the position of TransPerfect, the largest privately held language service provider in the world with presence in 75 cities (including Sao Paulo, Brazil), said Christian.