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Carrefour's Brazilian signage investment - a logical step? (44)

 

On the face of it, Carrefour's decision to satellite-connect and upgrade the signage systems in its 108-strong hypermarket chain across Brazil (see story here) looks a bold initiative.

It's only when you realise the fact that more than 15 million Brazilians cannot read or write that you begin to understand the logic behind the move.

Traditional print advertising does not work if you cannot read or write and, whilst Carrefour, in common with several other major companies in Brazil, is helping the government with its education programme on that front, the situation is likely to continue for at least one more generation.

Despite this lack of literacy, Brazil's economy is growing fast and the country is in the fast lane in terms of new media.

Depending on who you speak to, Carrefour has somewhere between 400 and 450 stores across Brazil, with approaching 50,000 staff. Not bad for a country with almost 200 million citizens, making it the sixth-largest country in the world in terms of population.

The country's demographics are a media professional's dream - multi-ethnic and 75 per cent Catholic, 42 per cent of the population are under 20 and urban.

Despite the influence of the Church, all retail stores are allowed to open seven days per week, 24 hours a day.

In the light of this, you can begin to see the potential in Brazil - no wonder Carrefour is investing so heavily in its retail outlets, setting up petrol station forecourts and buying into pharmacies across the country.

You could argue that Carrefour is to Brazil as Tesco is to the UK, but the depth of commitment goes much further than that - Carrefour is a major investor in people in an emerging market. It also has a positive track record of more than 30 years in the country.

The company organises a number of original social programmes for its employees. In ethical terms, it instils the values of respect and integrity into its managers and employees through its Pro Etica programme.

For several years, the firm has run the Carrefour Volunteer programme, designed to promote skills sponsorship and volunteer work. As part of this initiative, more than 1,500 employees devoted four hours per month to performing voluntary work in aid of 8,000 children and teenagers in 2006.

It's against this backdrop that you begin to understand why Carrefour has invested in a satellite-connected digital signage system for its hypermarket chain. The country is definitely on the up.

Compare and contrast that to the economic meltdown taking place in the US at the moment. I wonder how long it will be before the US signage majors start acquiring Brazilian operations?...

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