Mom and pop shops are a huge source of job creation everywhere, and there is nothing wrong with opening up a bakery or a gadget shop. I'm always impressed by th

Mom and pop shops are a huge source of job creation everywhere, and there is nothing wrong with opening up a bakery or a gadget shop. I'm always impressed by the number of nail salons and 'padarias' opening up. Brazil has a lot of entrepreneurs. The franchise market grows at double digits. We you (and Rudi) are talking about is, specifically, tech companies. There you have a point.. college graduates are not familiar with the VC world and few talk about starting their own software company. Taking risk in the US is different than in Brazil. The US has the LLC and bankruptcy laws, which shields the founders if it goes under. Brazil makes the people responsible for every financial commitment, and the bankruptcy laws are impossible to understand. If your company tanks, you personally go under too. Disclosure: I'm also Brazilian and currently a co-founder at a São Paulo-based tech startup.