Latin America's retail landscape has changed dramatically over the last 20 years. Attracted by deregulation and a sizable and growing market, modern retailers arrived looking for the next El Dorado. But signs of maturity appeared much before expected. Traditional retailers modernized their offer, while keeping their appeal to the emerging consumers. While chain retail has concentrated earlier than expected - and faster by the hand of crisis that are usual in emerging markets -, local chains have developed formats which add modernity to their understanding of their customers' base. By providing better access through convenience and credit to a broader range that even includes affordable design and quality, local chains are showing the way to the growing mass customers that form Latin America's new emerging middle class. And leveraging on this customer understanding, they are redefining concepts like convenience and crossing borders to grab the opportunity of the new emerging consumers. This article covers the evolution of retailing in Latin America over the past two decades, and provides insights on the segment that has brought the most significant growth: emerging consumers.

You can learn a lot about consumer marketing in the developing world by looking at the practices of its leading retailers. Multinational retailers have been slow to understand consumers in the developing world. As a result, they’ve been vulnerable to local competitors that know how their shoppers think, what they crave, and how they buy. These local retailers offer some valuable lessons: Forget the myth that the high end is the most lucrative segment. In emerging markets, the number of affluent consumers who could champion your product is small, and the wealthy tend to favor shopping trips abroad. Instead, aim your products at low-income segments from the start. Cater to consumers’ tendency to buy a lot of the cheapest products and a little of the best by providing decent quality at the low end and aspirational choices at the high end. Turn your stores into centers of learning, where shoppers can fill the gaps in their product knowledge. Expect the unexpected and develop quick reflexes—you’ll need them to deal with the rapid market expansion and demographic change of emerging economies.

This study explores the Latin American retail landscape to identify key pillars upon which innovative business models rely. In a region where retail innovation has traditionally been targeted at high-income consumers, we find a new breed of retailers that cater to the large mass of emerging consumers. Using qualitative research methods, we delve into the minds of Latin American emerging consumers to uncover their needs and paradigms. We also pinpoint the avenues of innovation retailers have followed to serve this impoverished segment. We find that retailers’ efforts to innovate have resulted in at least three original retail formats: one centered on providing access to durable goods, another centered on offering a wide assortment of goods and a convenient location, and the last one centered on incorporating design and quality. Based on the wheel of retailing theory, we show how these new formats are changing the structure of the retail industry in the region

In June 2001, Empresa Editora El Comercio (EEEC) had launched a new popular newspaper, Trome, for low-income families in Lima, Peru. Although several studies had preceded this launch, sales in following months failed to reach expected levels and actually displayed a decreasing trend. Trome embodied the company’s effort to expand its news coverage to new population segments that were not served by its other newspaper, El Comercio, a market leader that had served as the foundation for the company itself. Six months after Trome’s launch and faced with dropping sales, company managers had met to discuss their options. This case describes management team members’ dilemmas at that meeting: “Should the new paper’s style and contents be changed? Should Trome focus more on sex and violence-related issues, as its competitors did? Would it be convenient to replace the silverware promotion chosen to support launching? Was the channel conflict adequately managed? Were intended readers’ needs truly and fully understood? Should the company re-launch Trome or would it be wiser to just give up on this project? This case was written in 2008 -although the information used was seven years old- to leverage its wealth of insights into base-of-the-pyramid (BOP) businesses. The delay in case elaboration was due to the extreme confidentiality surrounding these emerging markets’ scarce data. Newspaper market, innovation, new product launching, emerging markets, Latin America (LATAM).

Si nos guiáramos por las características estructurales del sector minorista, éste debería estar imposibilitado para innovar. Y mucho menos si quiere apuntar a los consumidores emergentes. Claro, los minoristas casi no tienen incidencia en los productos que venden, entonces mal podrían impulsar la innovación desde su lugar de vendedores finales de una oferta ya elaborada. Además, resulta que la innovación es costosa, y es altamente improbable que los consumidores emergentes estén dispuestos a pagar un sobreprecio por un producto innovador. ¿Se puede ser tan concluyente? En absoluto. Los autores, profesores del IAE de Buenos Aires, han adaptado el radar de la innovación (creado por los académicos de Kellogg School Sawhney, Wolcott y Arroniz) para el sector minorista, y con él han descubierto casos de empresas del sector que sí han logrado innovar para los mercados emergentes. La clave, sostienen los autores, estuvo en su capacidad de repensarse holísticamente a nivel de modelo de negocios, y a la vez encontrar las oportunidades en aquellas particularidades propias de su sector. Y sin descuidar, por cierto, las dificultades de cambio conductual que suelen surgir con las innovaciones. Tras realizar una investigación a nivel continental, los autores extraen tres lecciones a partir de igual número de parejas de empresas innovadoras de un mismo subsector: Hortifruti y Surtifruver, en los productos frescos; Casas Bahia y Magazine Luiza, en productos electrónicos y muebles para el hogar; y las cadenas de farmacias Similares y Guadalajara. Finalmente, se propone una herramienta para que usted evalúe las dimensiones de la innovación en su modelo de negocios para el sector minorista.

Actualmente la clase media latinoamericana –que cuenta con un ingreso familiar mensual entre US$ 500 y US$ 2.500– constituye 67% de la población de la región, y su taza de crecimiento la está convirtiendo en un mercado con un potencial insospechado. Lamentablemente, el sector minorista no suele investigar mucho a los segmentos que componen su clientela, y tiende a aprender sobre ella apelando al viejo método del ensayo y error. El estudio realizado por los autores –provenientes del Consejo de Investigación Minorista de Coca-Cola para América Latina y de McKinsey– incluyó encuestas a 1.900 consumidores de ocho ciudades en cinco países latinoamericanos, y arrojó importantes lecciones para quienes quieran complacer a la enorme clase media de la región. La primera es la importancia de la dignidad y la confianza, pues se trata de clientes que no tienen holgura económica, pero quieren disfrutar del poder que les da la compra. Para ello es clave que sean bien tratados y que confíen en quien les vende. Esto es muy revelador para un sector que suele pasar por alto estos conceptos, al menos en nuestro continente. La otra lección importante apunta a la segmentación de este sector, el que está compuesto por cinco tipos de consumidores: los escépticos con limitaciones financieras, los compradores funcionales, los clientes de conveniencia orientados a las marcas, los clientes sociales en busca de experiencias y los amantes de las marcas. Cada uno de estos segmentos valora desigualmente los atributos presentes en el famoso “pentágono minorista”, por lo que es importante que las empresas ajusten sus ofertas a las diversas idiosincrasias de estos segmentos y les entreguen lo que éstos valoran más.

En los últimos años, la necesidad de atraer a los consumidores emergentes se ha vuelto el foco primordial para los principales minoristas latinoamericanos. Hasta ahora, atraerlos ha sido difícil debido a la insistencia en adaptar las fórmulas del retail que han funcionado en Europa y EE.UU., pero que tienen poco que ofrecer a consumidores con ingresos más modestos. Sin embargo, una investigación conjunta de The Coca-Cola Retailing Research Council–Latin America y la consultora Booz Allen Hamilton en 2006, –que combinó focus groups en Argentina, Brasil, Chile, Colombia y México con más de 200 entrevistas a consumidores en terreno y con un panel de expertos multidisciplinario– reveló que los grupos minoristas verdaderamente innovadores están logrando satisfacer a los consumidores emergentes de manera sostenida y rentable. Para ello, debieron derrotar cinco paradigmas muy arraigados en las mentes de los consumidores emergentes, que los alejaban de los productos que deseaban (por ser inalcanzables) y de los lugares que los vendían (por sentirlos inaccesibles y a veces hasta hostiles). Los minoristas exitosos latinoamericanos crearon una serie de nuevas posibilidades que pueden agruparse en tres plataformas de innovación dirigidas exclusivamente a satisfacer sus aspiraciones: brindar acceso a la compra de productos o servicios, con fórmulas de crédito más flexibles; ofrecer diseño, calidad y surtido a precios asequibles, rompiendo con el paradigma de que las tiendas bellas y bien decoradas deben ser caras; y proporcionar gran variedad y ubicación conveniente, acercando a estos consumidores los productos que necesitan. Empresas como Casas Bahia, Elektra, Casa&Ideas y Locatel, entre otras, ilustran cómo, con creatividad y flexibilidad, se puede satisfacer a este sector largamente incomprendido por las prácticas tradicionales del retail provenientes de otros entornos. Por lo mismo, lo que han hecho estas empresas merece exportarse a otras latitudes, sostienen los autores.

Only two out of the five levers –prices and assortment-, are consistently and broadly relevant accounting for nearly 75% of the price perception. Consumers’ diversity was apparent and so their attitudes towards promotions. We identified five major segments with different price attitudes and reactions to promotions, that were present in all the five cities covered, though their proportion varied. Consumers considered a limited set of SKU’s to form this price perception, and promotions had a minor role, except for those segments more interested in them. Promotions may cloud price perception accuracy among consumers, and drive the existence of bigger “bargain hunting” segments. Value of paper How OSPI is built is a relevant issue for retailers. Promotions are frequently used to build traffic, but its role in the OSPI is not so clear. They may strengthen the bonds with customers, but may also have a negative impact. Retailers may benefit from these insights when defining their promotional strategies, especially when considering EDLP strategies. As the study is based on five capital cities in Latin America, its results may also be of interest to retailers working in other emerging regions.

Findings Rather than emphasizing their limited income, emerging consumers as a group represent a sizable market for consumer products. But they should not be addressed as a single group: peculiarities among them underline the need for further segmentation, as in higher –income segments. Their needs should be better defined as basic instead of just simple, and they don’t just go for the lowest prices or second brands, as they have marked preferences that characterize them. This also reflects in their shopping habits, which partly explains the resilience of the traditional/small format retailers. Our findings underline these segments relevance for consumer products, their rational behaviour as they try to reconcile their preferences with their economic reality, and how this explains their distinct set of products and format requirements. Practical Implications Marketers and retailers interested in catering to lower-income segments will find clues to understanding the preferences, habits and needs of these segments that represent a significant portion of emerging markets. Originality / Value of the paper Conclusions are presented here in the form of 6 common myths on emerging consumers that are contradicted by our findings. The relevance of this study comes not only from the significant size of this market but also from the possibility of marketers to emphasize the social contribution of business.

Findings In spite of being “poor,” emerging consumers have a substantial purchasing power as a group. They work with a very specific set of products, categories and store format needs that distinguish them from other consumers. These distinct needs imply that it is not “just a matter of money and time” for them to change their purchasing patterns over to the “modern trade”. In fact, the evidence shows that smaller scale retailers fit the needs of emerging consumers quite well. Despite perceptions that the small retail sector draws its resilience from informality, we conclude that that the sector can be surprisingly efficient. Furthermore, they retailers exhibit a sustainable business model. Value of paper Although a wide variety of studies have been developed around small-scale retailers, less effort has been devoted to learn about local storekeepers that are actually conducting successful business, especially in reference to less developed countries.

Los tradicionales tres estratos socioeconómicos ya no sirven para explicar las decisiones de compra de los consumidores. Los perfiles del comprador latinoamericano son cinco, y derriban varios mitos acerca de cómo construyen su percepción de precios. Las empresas que adapten sus estrategias podrán fortalecer sus propuestas y llegar a esos bolsillos.

Si nos guiáramos por las características estructurales del sector minorista, éste debería estar imposibilitado para innovar. Y mucho menos si quiere apuntar a los consumidores emergentes. Claro, los minoristas casi no tienen incidencia en los productos que venden, entonces mal podrían impulsar la innovación desde su lugar de vendedores finales de una oferta ya elaborada. Además, resulta que la innovación es costosa, y es altamente improbable que los consumidores emergentes estén dispuestos a pagar un sobreprecio por un producto innovador. ¿Se puede ser tan concluyente? En absoluto. Los autores, profesores del IAE de Buenos Aires, han adaptado el radar de la innovación (creado por los académicos de Kellogg School Sawhney, Wolcott y Arroniz) para el sector minorista, y con él han descubierto casos de empresas del sector que sí han logrado innovar para los mercados emergentes. La clave, sostienen los autores, estuvo en su capacidad de repensarse holísticamente a nivel de modelo de negocios, y a la vez encontrar las oportunidades en aquellas particularidades propias de su sector. Y sin descuidar, por cierto, las dificultades de cambio conductual que suelen surgir con las innovaciones. Tras realizar una investigación a nivel continental, los autores extraen tres lecciones a partir de igual número de parejas de empresas innovadoras de un mismo subsector: Hortifruti y Surtifruver, en los productos frescos; Casas Bahia y Magazine Luiza, en productos electrónicos y muebles para el hogar; y las cadenas de farmacias Similares y Guadalajara. Finalmente, se propone una herramienta para que usted evalúe las dimensiones de la innovación en su modelo de negocios para el sector minorista.

A fines de los 90, encaramos con John Quelch, colega de Harvard y amigo de muchos años, la publicación de un libro sobre estrategias de negocios de compañías en América Latina. Nos interesaba entonces retratar cómo algunas empresas globales adaptaban sus estrategias a las características de la región, y al mismo tiempo, rescatamos los casos de varias compañías originarias de la región que tenían un destacable desarrollo que las llevaba, incluso, a abrir mercados fuera del continente. La globalización anunciada en los 80 abrió las puertas de los mercados emergentes hasta entonces protegidos, y desató en los 90 privatizaciones de sectores y una ola de adquisiciones de empresas emergentes por parte de competidores internacionales. La baja de tarifas estimuló el intercambio y la llegada de nuevos productos importados que se imponían desplazando a la producción local. Pero muchas empresas encontraron que sus estrategias de productos y precios masivos solo lograban penetrar parcialmente los mercados emergentes. La ausencia de una clase media significativa y un menor poder adquisitivo cuestionaban la capacidad de penetración, en tanto el mercado masivo permanecía atendido por los fabricantes locales, qeu gradualmente fueron incorporando nuevas prácticas y desarrollando sus propios modelos de negocios. A fines de 2004, en una reunion del Consejo Minorista de Coca-Cola en Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, al buscar el tema de investigación para el siguiente proyecto y frente a la evidencia de las limitaciones de las estrategias de las empresas globales, surgió la siguiente reflexión: tiene que haber empresas innovadoras en la región que sirvan de ejemplo.

Los temas del libro La Esencia del Marketing progresan desde una mirada que procura ampliar la perspectiva, haica la creaciòn de valor, y luego entran algunos aspectos específicos que nos han interesado: la implementación efectiva de los planes-un recurrente problema-, el enfoque de servicios, la gestión en el punto de venta, los segmentos emergentes y la exportación. En este sentido, cada capítulo puede ser tratado de manera individual, así como las notas incluídas ya que fueron escritas de manera independiente, aunque este libro es testimonio de un hilo conductor que guió nuestro trabajo en años. Existen dos temas diversos que reflejan dos momentos muy distintos:mis intereses inciales y los más recientes. Mis intereses iniciales, se remiten a la expansión internacional de los negocios, un tema que ha mostrado ser particularmente difícil para los países latinoamericanos, dados los vaivenes de nuestras economías. Los más recientes se centran en mis últimas investigaciones que han transcurrido dirigiendo el Coca Cola Retailing Research Council de Latinoamérica, e invevitablemente nos topamos con las grandes masas de consumidores emergentes. Encontramos varios mitos, situaciones paradojales, y estudiamos estrategias para atraer y brindar acceso a mejores condiciones para la base de la pirámide.

The 20th century was a fascinating time in more ways than one, and retailing experienced its influence, mirroring the profound changes that reshaped social life. The accelerated transformation undergone by the manufacturing industry also reached the retail sector and fueled its dramatic evolution. It was amidst this increasingly complex environment that the late Michael O’Connor interpreted the need to gain a better understanding of the changing, complex issues that filled the retail landscape. And who better than the retailers themselves to define the areas where more light was needed? This initiative translated into the Research Councils, that were intelligently supported over these past twenty-five years by the Coca Cola Company and expanded from the United States first into Europe, then to Latin America and, more recently, into Asia. Thus, this overall experience offers a unique opportunity to look at how retailers view their own sector globally and from a regional perspective, as well as their inquiries about its evolution. This book only brings together these projects in condensed versions. However, it interestingly depicts the quest of retailers to improve their understanding of their own sector. The twenty-nine projects included comprise a significant wealth of knowledge, bringing clarity to different issues that caught the attention of retail leaders during this period of accelerated change. Many maintain their relevance to this day, showing how Council Members were often ahead of their time, anticipating trends that would impact and change the industry. They cover a wide range of topics and regions, and -perhaps somewhat arbitrarily, as in any classification- we chose to align these studies under four tracks: the look at the market, strategic insights, managing the most valuable and costly asset –their people, and extracting a profit. Readers will be entering into the fascinating world of retailing and the challenges it presented over the past twenty-five years, following on the footsteps of retail leaders from around the world. Their thoughts, concerns, questions and solutions are generously shared through the contribution of a Company that has learned to look beyond its own short-term interests. Full versions of the studies in this book may be found at www.ccrrc.org.

La creciente complejidad del comercio minorista hace que gestionarlo efectivamente sea un desafío cada vez más difícil. Este libro busca facilitar la ardua tarea que cada día enfrentan los directivos del retail. A partir de las presiones que soportan los minoristas presenta un esquema de formulación de la estrategia que avanza hasta la efectiva ejecución. Detall es Detalle. Es necesario no quedarse solo en el plano estratégico sino avanzar a la ejecución del día a día, tienda por tienda y producto por producto. Las Ocho Claves del Retail -el Triángulo y el Pentágono-, identifican los aspectos fundamentales de la estrategia minorista. El modelo de Gestión Estratégica de los Recursos Minoristas permite vigilar detalladamente la marcha del negocio para lograr la difícil rentabilidad de este negocio. Todo esto tratado sin perder de vista las características particulares del entorno minorista de los países emergentes. Cómo los pequeños minoristas también crean valor para satisfacer a los consumidores emergentes, y cómo los fabricantes adaptan sus políticas y prácticas para crear valor en el complejo universo minorista. El sector minorista ha evolucionado hasta tener desafíos estratégicos significativos y particulares del sector. Esta complejidad merece un análisis profundo y detallado. Esta obra representa la búsqueda seria y fundamentada sobre el diseño de la estrategia, las herramientas para su implementación efectiva, la medición financiera y de la productividad específicamente en el negocio retail, y el marco de las relaciones con los fabricantes.

Administracion de Servicios es un significativa revisión y reestructuración del muy recocido libro Services Marketing de Christopher Lovelock. Esta obra representa el primer intento serio y fundamentado para crear un libro en español en que se analizan las estrechas interrelaciones que existen entre los procesos de marketing, operaciones, y recursos humanos en las empresas de servicio. El libro contiene herramientas, conceptos, y estrategias que enfatizan el reto de adminstrar negocios de servicio en el ambiente competitivo de hoy. Hay numerosos ejemplos de diferentes empresas de servicio, especialmente de America Latina y España. Contiene también importantos resultultados de investigación, ochos casos de estudio (seís de los cuales son de empresas en paises de hablo español) y ocho lecturas de autores lider en su campo de estudio. Este libro es adecuado para estudiantes de carreras profesionales como para alumnos de posgrado y participantes de programas ejecutivos. Los instructores que lo utilicen puedan hacer uso selectivo de capítulos, lecturas, y casos para impartir cursos de diferente formato y duracion, y sea en Administración de Servicios, Marketing de Servicios, o Operaciones de Servicio.

 This chapter focuses on low-income consumers in Latin America, and on the retailers that serve their needs. We first highlight some macroeconomic data on the region, describe the research method followed, and then cover our major findings about low –income consumers( such as brand preference, frequency of purchase, ticket size, store selection criteria, their buying decision process, and so on). We then look at the retailers that serve these consumers’ needs and try to understand their business model and value proposition. Finally, we analyze both the performance and the fiscal behavior of smaller retailers.

What did local store chains do to successfully approach emerging consumers? Do emerging store chains organize differently to cater to this new market more effectively? With these questions in mind we set to study how emerging retailers are solving their access to emerging consumers around at different emerging latitudes. This project was sponsored by The Coca-Cola Retailing Research Council, and field work was commissioned to the WPP Group –The Store, The Futures Company and MVI-Kantar Retailing. Following a pragmatic approach and using qualitative research methods, we gathered information about six local retailers from different countries and sectors. To identify common marketing practices among the retailers in Emerging Markets, the information was examined according to the 8-ways-to-win in retailing framework , which features eight fundamentally proven dimensions of the retail business. Despite the differences in market contexts and execution strategies, we found some common principles that will prove useful to companies willing to perform in emerging environments. Although our limited sample cannot yield definitive conclusions, it showed six pillars upon which local retailers rely on to serve Emerging Consumers successfully. While in order to identify “best practices” in emerging markets most of previous research focused on the experience of Multinational manufacturers and Small-Scale retailers, our research focused on studying six local store chains all aiming at the same segments of emerging consumers. Each of the studied retailers has proven to serve its consumers successfully. We believe that the value of this study resides not only on its focus on large local retailers, but also on the diversity of sectors (consumer electronics goods, department stores, supermarkets, hypermarkets, hard-discounts, and franchise stores) and countries (Brazil, Peru, China, Poland, Turkey, and South Africa) covered.

Upon becoming general manager of Artesanías de Colombia (AC), Paola Andrea Muñoz Jurado faced the challenge of redefining the company strategy. AC was a mixed ownership company aimed at fostering, promoting and marketing Colombian handicraft, thus creating attractive job and economic development opportunities for artisans, a low-income sector mostly of indigenous origin. Soon after assuming as general manager, Paola engaged herself in reviewing the company´s previous management in order to plan her next steps. In doing this, it was key to assess the true impact on society of the activities carried out during the previous 16 years under her predecessor, Cecilia Duque’s leadership. The present case allows students to work on a no-for-profit organization strategy, with a strong social orientation, and evaluate value creation within a complex network of relationships with a strong economic, social and cultural impact.

In June 2001, Empresa Editora El Comercio (EEEC) had launched a new popular newspaper, Trome, for low-income families. Although several studies had preceded this launch, sales in following months failed to reach expected levels and actually displayed a decreasing trend. Trome embodied the company’s effort to expand its news coverage to new population segments that were not served by its other newspaper, El Comercio –a traditional daily leading unaided recall and frequent readership rankings among high-income sectors. Six months after Trome’s launch and faced with dropping sales, company managers had met to discuss their options. This case describes management team members’ dilemmas at that meeting: “Should the new paper’s style and contents be changed? Should Trome focus more on sex and violence-related issues, as its competitors did? Would it be convenient to replace the silverware promotion chosen to support launching? Was the conflict with newspaper salesmen’s union adequately managed? Were intended readers’ needs truly and fully understood? Should the company re-launch Trome or would it be wiser to just give up on this project?

How corporate social responsibility (CSR) and bottom of the pyramid (BOP) strategies could interact in a synergistic way? Based on two different sets of assumptions on the nature and goals of the firm, this paper develops two paradigms under which that synergy could be created. The first paradigm, which we call instrumental, assumes that the social responsibility of the firm is embedded in its goal of profit maximization. Given this goal and the fact that it is logically impossible to maximize in more than one dimension at the same time, BOP strategies are a means to achieve the profit maximization goal. Therefore, the synergistic connection between BOP and CSR is done using an instrumental or means-end logic: the social responsibility of the firm is the maximization of profits and BOP strategies are alternative means to achieve that goal. The second paradigm, which we call intrinsic, assumes that the social responsibility of the firm is intrinsically embedded in its goals of creating and distributing value. In this view, BOP strategies, when adopted by a particular firm, are necessary parts of the value creation and distribution system. Therefore, the synergistic connection between BOP and CSR is done using a practical or part-whole logic: BOP strategies have not only an instrumental but also an intrinsic dimension that makes those strategies as necessary parts of the value-creation and distribution goals of the firm. In this paper, we argue that this latter paradigm is a better lens to understand the connection between CSR and BOP strategies, because it acknowledges both the instrumental and intrinsic dimensions of these phenomena. However, it stresses that focusing only on the instrumental dimension of CSR and BOP strategies will damage the value creating and distribution goals of the firm in the long run. At the same time, we argue that the intrinsic paradigm provides the criteria for a genuine approach to CSR and BOP, because, going beyond the instrumentality of these phenomena, derives their meaning from a broader view of the nature of the firm and its role in society. As from the development and comparison of both paradigms and based on a series of case studies, this paper concludes with a set of criteria for discriminating between firms more inclined towards an instrumental paradigm and firms more oriented towards an intrinsic paradigm. These criteria contribute not only to managerial self-evaluation but also to future research on the implications of CSR and BOP strategies based on two different set of assumptions about the nature and goals of the firm.

Organized modern retail formats have based much of its successful expansion in its attraction to the mass consumer, replacing the traditional small formats. Yet in emerging markets, where most of the mass market is placed around or below the line of poverty, small retailers keep attracting customers in spite of the expansion of modern formats. Focusing our research in Latin America, with its typical emerging markets, our main question was why is it that traditional small formats endure in spite of the increasing modernization of retail that took place in the 1990’s?

Understanding consumer behavior seems necessary to help marketers effectively address the needs of the lower-income segments that represent a significant portion of emerging markets. However, the literature indicates that most studies of lower-income consumers have focused on the developed countries. Little attention has been paid to developing regions. Our research objective was to understand what is retail value for emerging consumers?

Serving the consumer products needs of Latin America’s sizeable lower income, or “emerging” consumer base may at first glance seem like a tempting opportunity – or perhaps even a necessity—for supermarket retailers in search of new customers. Yet smaller scale retailers already supply a significant portion of fast-moving consumer goods to these segments. Is this the natural order for supermarket retailing in Latin America? Is, as some would claim, the continued success of small-scale retail in Latin America attributable to market inefficiencies? Can large chain retailers create value for emerging consumers and win them as customers? New research across six Latin American countries examines the mindset of emerging consumers and lessons learned from the small-scale retail trade. Our research found that many elements of the conventional wisdom about lower income consumers are unfounded. In spite of being “poor,” emerging consumers have substantial purchasing power as a group—and they exercise their buying power in some quite surprising, yet rational ways. For one thing, it is not a given that these consumers are attracted to low prices or whatever is “low cost.” And they exhibit a very specific set of product, category, and store format needs that distinguish them as consumers from the middle and higher income segments that were typically the focus for many of the large supermarket retailers. These distinct needs imply that it is not “just a matter of money and time” for emerging consumers to change their purchasing patterns. Readers should be careful about falling into the “informality trap” and losing sight of these consumers’ needs, and how small retailers have effectively addressed them. In fact, the evidence shows that smaller scale retailers fit the needs of emerging consumers quite well. Furthermore, small retailers manage to offset scale disadvantages (in areas such as purchasing) and have a sustainable business model—even before the effects of any informality in taxes and labor contributions. Despite perceptions that the small retail sector draws its resilience from informality, we conclude that there is much more to small-scale retailers’ value proposition and business model—and that the sector can be surprisingly efficient.

Emerging consumers want and need it all. Some Latin American retailsers have created innovative and attractive shopping experiences that successfully and profitably moved these consumers from resignation to access in both a functional and emotional way. Different roads may be used to cater these vast needs, as proves our study of several retailers using a holistic, industry-specific approach brings out.

Los consumidores emergentes quieren y precisan todo.Algunos retailers de Amérida Latina crearon experiencias de compras innovadoras y atractivas que han logrado, de manera exitosa y productiva que ciertos consumidores "resignados" pasaran a ser consumidores con un mayor acceso a bienes.

The so called "flatness" of the world shows that in spite of the progress of globalization, several gaps still need to be addressed, particularly in emerging markets. This opens an incredible opportunity for companies to cater to the needs of the global emerging consumers, as they increasingly rise our of poverty. but to focus on this, companies need to rethink not only their business models, but also the impact their actions have in emerging societies which often lack strong regulatory systems.

A raiz de la reciente sanción de la Ley de Medios, el autor se pregunta: ¿hay otra forma de negociación, fuera de la imposición? La necesidad de que los empresarios negocien con el resto de la sociedad una agenda en común.

Most probably the current financial year will not be the most fortunate one, but perhaps it can turn out to be the year in which we strengthen our bonds with customers, balance market forces, and even conquer clients abandoned by less creative and hardened competitors in spite of the recession. The article urges to re-focus our organization on its essential mission of creating value for our customers.

Entre los consumidores y los productos que adquieren, y sus proveedores se establecen relaciones de valor basadas en los beneficios percibidos al utilizar los productos, menos los costos asociados con el hecho de seleccionarlos, adquirirlos y utilizarlos. La experiencia creciente del consumidor y otros factores que influyen en la evolución de los hábitos de compra provocan que el concepto de valor evolucione, con implicancias para el desarrollo de nuevos productos, su distribución y servicios asociados, y las estrategias comerciales en general. Esta nota intentará facilitar la comprensión del concepto "valor para el consumidor", explicando los elementos que lo componen.