Mi Swing Es Tropical – But Not My Consumers: Economic Realism and Cultural Contradictions in Latin American Marketing of Apple’S I-Conic Products

Due to geopolitics, regulatory regimes, and strategic factors, the highly desirable brands from Apple such as iPod and iPhone have poor availability, inadequate post-sales service systems, and high prices in most countries in Latin America. This creates feelings of resentment across the large range of Latin American consumers. Based on netnographic interpretation of a gadget oriented blog site and other sources, this paper presents a framework to understand the interplay of economically rational acts and culturally complex and contradictory flows that arise in Apple’s marketing of its highly sought iconic products.

Citation:

Nikhilesh Dholakia, Julianne Joy Cabusas, and Emilio J. M. Arruda-Filho (2008) ,"Mi Swing Es Tropical – But Not My Consumers: Economic Realism and Cultural Contradictions in Latin American Marketing of Apple’S I-Conic Products", in LA - Latin American Advances in Consumer Research Volume 2, eds. Claudia R. Acevedo, Jose Mauro C. Hernandez, and Tina M. Lowrey, Duluth, MN : Association for Consumer Research, Pages: 145-146.