Mercadolibre.com Coming to Costa Rica

Mercadolibre.com, the Latin American sister of the Internet-commerce giant Ebay.com, announced it is setting up shop in Costa Rica.

Costa Rica’s economic prosperity and Internet coverage make it an attractive market for Mercadolibre.com, which operates in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela, said the company’s president Marco Galperín.

“Costa Rica is in a process of expansion, with the Internet reaching almost 23% of the population and 1 million users connected,” Galperín said at a press conference last month.

Costa Ricans who shop online at Mercadolibre.com have long asked the company to come here, and Galperín said he is confident Tico Web shoppers will make the venture profitable.

Mercadolibre.com was launched in 1999 in association with Ebay. Last year, it generated more than $608 million in sales to 17 million Latin American clients.