From November 2 to 6, we traveled to São Paulo, Brazil,
where we attended the 65th anniversary party of the Kumamoto Prefectural Association and held business meetings with local trading companies and promotion professionals.
Here is our report on the São Paulo market, sent from the field.
[First, an overview of São Paulo, Brazil]
Brazil has a population of more than 200 million, including an estimated 2 million or more people of Japanese descent.
It all began in 1908, when 781 people crossed the ocean.
(Reference: JICA “Latin America and Japan, Weaving History — CASE 2: Passing on the History of Immigration to the Future, Brazil” (Japanese))
Liberdade, the Asian district of São Paulo, is also home to the Historical Museum of Japanese Immigration in Brazil.
[Liberdade today]
Liberdade developed as an Asian—and Japanese—neighborhood, but today it is sometimes called the “former Japantown.”
Here is what we saw there.
The most striking feature is the sheer number of people. It has become a tourist destination rather than a residential area, visited not only by Japanese people but also by many locals and international visitors, and with a university nearby, there are many students as well. The streets are lined with all kinds of shops, including many Japanese restaurants (sushi, udon, ramen…), Japanese grocery stores, and even maid cafés and shops selling Japanese manga (in Japanese and in translation)!
There are also shops for young people of every kind, including fruit cafés that make smoothies—a Brazilian specialty—Korean-style variety stores, and stylish cafés.
In this district, we enjoyed meals at very popular cafés and ramen shops, and held business meetings with the import trading company that operates them.
[The economy of São Paulo, Brazil]
Brazil’s currency is the Brazilian real (BRL, R$); at the time of writing, R$1 is about ¥30.
The ramen in the photo cost about R$60, or roughly ¥1,800.
That’s more expensive than in Japan! Japanese food is generally in the premium category, yet all over São Paulo you see many people lining up to eat ramen, udon, and other Japanese dishes.
It felt like a scene that promises further economic growth for Brazil.
In the evening we also visited an izakaya, which was packed as well.
We were surprised by an atmosphere and menu that were, in a sense, “more Japanese than Japan.”
There’s even karaoke in the basement ♪♪
That concludes our brief first report from São Paulo, Brazil. We hope you enjoyed it.
We will continue to share information on a variety of overseas markets.
Thank you for reading.