Retail in Brazil - Historical Rescue and Trends

Abstract

Objective: This study provides a historical overview of the evolution of retailing in Brazil, portraying the trajectory of retail trade from the discovery of gold in the interior of the country to the present day, making a parallel between the social, economic and political changes in the country and the changes in the retailing along the time.

Method: The study was developed through extensive bibliographical research in books, theses, dissertations, scientific articles and national and international periodicals, under a historical perspective and a chronological and descriptive format, emphasizing emblematic moments for the retail evolution in Brazil.

Originality / relevance: This study fills a gap in the marketing literature on the history of retailing in Brazil, contributing to the evolution of new perspectives of study, and shedding lights on little known issues of retailing in Brazil.

Results: The article describes the trajectory of retailing in Brazil up to the present day, describing its evolution over time. The study concludes showing the transformations that the new technologies have impressed to the sector, evidencing the search for entertainment and the shopping experience as the new retailing  inductors.

Theoretical / methodological contributions: Marketing and business research from the historical perspective expands the possibilities of research through new sources, problems and approaches, contributing to expand the opportunities for analysis and theorization about the organizational environment. It also fills a gap in the retail literature in Brazil, given the scarcity of academic studies in the field of Applied Social Sciences on retailing with a historical perspective.