With only two distribution centers and a more limited selection than Brazilian players, Amazon can’t compete head to head with the likes of MercadoLibre Inc.
Total sales for the leading online retailers in Latin America increased 13.8% in 2018 after growing by only 3.8% a year earlier due to the downturn in Brazil, the region’s largest economy. Chile’s top e-retailers helped pull up the regional average, growing by 20.2% in 2018 over the prior year.
The Latin American online marketplace raised $1.85 billion total through a public share offering and direct investments from companies including PayPal.
Store-based retailers account for nearly half of online retail sales in Latin America, and those merchants are growing rapidly on the web. But Amazon’s belated entry into full-scale selling in Brazil could change that picture.
Latin America’s middle class has doubled in size over the last decade and the region is home to some of the fastest-growing e-commerce markets in the world. Here is how U.S. retailers and brands can get in on the action.