Reality Check at the Bottom of the Pyramid

Consumer products companies have largely saturated demand from the nearly 1 billion affluent consumers of North America, the EU, and elsewhere.  They’ve also aggressively pursued the 2 billion people who make up the rapidly emerging middle class of Asia and Latin America; these people may not be mainstream consumers yet, but unless something goes terribly wrong, they will be, within 20 years.

However, this leaves a potential market of 4 billion poor people who legendary business strategist C.K. Prahalad referred to as “the bottom of th.....