For the first time in history more than half the world is middle-class
Burgeoning bourgeoisie
THE crowd surges back and forth, hands above heads, mobile-phone cameras snapping one of Brazil's best-known samba bands. It could be almost anywhere in Latin America's largest city on a Saturday night. But this is Paraisopolis, one of São Paulo's notorious crime-infested favelas (slums). Casas Bahia, the country's largest retailer, is celebrating the opening there of its first ever store in a favela (pictured above). It is selling television sets and refrigerators in a place that, at first glance, has no running water or electricity. This article appeared in the Special report section of the print edition under the headline “Burgeoning bourgeoisie”From the February 14th 2009 editionDiscover stories from this section and more in the list of contentsExplore the edition