Why Apple’s First Retail Store in Brazil Is Actually a Really Big Deal

Apple is about to take its much-awaited leap into Latin America.

According to Apple news site 9to5Mac, Apple is aiming to launch its first retail store in Brazil by March 2014. The store, which has been under construction since last year, will be located in Rio de Janeiro

The move into Brazil is a big deal. Smartphone sales, for one, have been booming in the region — sales jumped by 53% in the first quarter of 2013 alone, and grew more than in any other region in the second quarter — and Brazil, Latin America’s largest economy, has a lot to do with it. Customers in the country are so enamored with iPhones that many are willing to pay upward of $1,000 for Apple’s new 5c, which retails for about $550 in the U.S. Furthermore, Latin America is quickly becoming a digital-age goldmine. Internet penetration currently hovers around 45% in the region, and more than 250 million people are now connected to the Internet. Read more...