Doing Business with Brazil - Getting Started

DOING BUSINESS WITH BRAZIL - MOVING FORWARD
PART ONE: GETTING STARTED

INTRODUCTION

This article is aimed at small- and medium-size enterprises already engaged in import and/or export operations.

Have you thought about expanding your overseas market or outsourcing part of your production? Have you
already considered Brazil – South America’s industrial giant – but did not know where to begin? There is no
shortage of free information available to help you get started. However, for the busy entrepreneur – juggling
administrative tasks, production, marketing, sales, customer service and much more – information-overload can
short-circuit your brain and hinder progress. This two-part article is intended to get you started, step by step, at
your own pace.

WHY BRAZIL?

For those of you who only know Brazil for its brilliant soccer and extravagant carnival, here are some quick facts
about Brazil to expand your vision.

Occupying over 50 percent of the South American continent, Brazil is the fifth largest country in the world.
It contains 22 percent of the world’s arable land surface.
Brazil is the gateway to Mercosur: it shares common borders with every other South American country, except
Chile and Ecuador.
With an estimated population of over 186 million in 2007, Brazil has the world’s fifth largest population after
China, India, the USA, and Indonesia.
Over 50 percent of the population is economically active, making Brazil the seventh-largest consumer market.
Brazil’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of US$1.838 trillion in 2007 (est.), and still growing, is the tenth-highest
in the world.
In a World Bank study released in January 2008, Brazil has now become the sixth largest economy in the world,
up from eleventh place in 2006.
Brazil has the largest and most diversified industrial base in South America. Here are some statistical data
obtained from Brazil’s Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (APEX), indicating the country’s place on the
world market for the following products:

The largest producer and exporter of iron ore, coffee, orange juice, sugar and ethanol;
The largest exporter of soybean, beef and chicken;
The fifth-largest rubber industry and seventh-largest paper and pulp industry;
The world’s largest producer of regional aviation jets and fourth in commercial aircraft;
Ranks third in shoes and soft-drink production;
Eight-largest steel producer and tenth in automobiles;
The world’s sixth-largest market for cosmetics, with annual sales of US$9 billion;
Its modern and competitive textile industries are comprised of 30,000 companies with annual sales of US$21
billion; and
It has the most advanced banking system and one of the most high-tech telecommunications systems in the
world. In Brazil, 99 percent of tax returns are filed over the Internet.

With sales of 10.7 million PCs in 2007, Brazil is the world's fifth largest PC market according to the IDC
Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker. IDC estimates that Brazil will become the third largest market by the end of
2010.

To learn more about the advantages of doing business with Brazil, link to Apex Brazil.

For more information about Brazil’s economy, check out the site of the Brazilian Embassy in Washington.

Still not sure that Brazil is the place to market your products or outsource your production? Here are some trade
statistics from the US Census Bureau for US companies already doing business with Brazil.

As at January 2008, Brazil ranked 13th place with 1.7 percent of the US total import/export trade.
US exports from California to Brazil have increased steadily over the period 2003 to 2006. In 2006, Brazil
ranked 19th place with a value of $1,607 million, an increase of 13.4 percent over 2005.

For more information for your State, click here.

GETTING TO KNOW BRAZIL

Want to know more about this immense market with diversified industries? For a complete look at Brazil in all its
aspects, you can choose any one of the following sites:

ATTEND A TRADE FAIR

Now that you have read all the information available about Brazil, it is the time to have a closer look. Sure, you
can visit Brazil as a tourist. There are all kinds of places to suit every type of interest.

One of the best ways to enter the Brazilian market is by attending a trade show. You can find trade shows of your
interest through Brazil Trade Net. You will also find a selected list of trade events on my page Brazil - Trade
Events.

The U.S. Commercial Service in Brazil – a country-level division of the US Department of Commerce – can also
assist you and organize meetings with potential buyers during these events.

Brazilian trade promotion offices in the USA can also provide you with important advice to make your trip
profitable and enjoyable.

For information on obtaining a Brazilian Visa, click here.

Check out >> Part 2: Know Your Market - Market Research.

Your questions and comments would be most welcome.
Forward them to admin@rosalienebacchus.com.

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THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY THE

CORPORATE DEALMAKER

IN THEIR ARTICLE,

EMERGING MARKET WATCH: THE CHALLENGES OF

SELLING TO BOOMING BRAZIL,"

POSTED ON THEIR WEBSITE ON 27 FEBRUARY 2008.