In the WSJ, an article on Forever 21‘s new stores, In Brazil, the Long Wait for Fast Fashion, highlights some of the issues business has to deal with (emphasis added):
Keeping prices low has been a challenge for most retailers because operating costs in Brazil are high. Apparel vendors in Brazil pay an estimated 35% in taxes on their products, compared with about 8% in the U.S., according to Alexis Frick, a São Paulo-based analyst for market researcher Euromonitor International. Retailers that ship their products in from abroad pay as much as a 35% in addition to those taxes in import taxes.
Take a look:
Price Check
Comparing prices in the U.S. versus Brazil for select items. These are website prices as of March 17.
Items U.S. price Brazil price Mizuno New Prophecy 3 $210 $426 Mac lipstick $16 $28 Unlocked iPhone 5S (16 GB) $650 $1,190
When a friend from Brazil told me my Kitchenaid mixer (that retails for $250 on Amazon) sells in Brazil for US$1,000+, I asked that he take it when he went back, sell it, and we split the profit.
He already had bought one for himself, otherwise I would have sold him mine.
Related:
The Economist did a price comparison on Latin America iPhonomics.
UPDATE:
Linked by Dustbury. Thanks!
