Mexicans coming to US to shop at border mall

AP:

With a blare of mariachis and a platform sagging under the weight of public officials wanting to take part, this impoverished Mexican border city recently cut the ribbon on a $50 million outlet mall that boasts status labels like Burberry, Izod and Coach.

Although the median household income is half the national average and only 15 percent of its residents have graduated from college, towns like Mercedes are the jackpot for retailers who find their stores accessible to Mexican luxury shoppers, particularly from the mansion-filled hills of Monterrey, 120 miles away.

And so far, cross-border holiday shoppers have helped keep cash registers ringing at Mercedes' new Rio Grande Valley Premium Outlets, owned by Simon Property Group Inc., a subsidiary of Chelsea Property Group.

"The Mexican consumer really likes to go shopping in the United States," Chelsea President John Klein said. "We have had that experience in other malls in the Valley; it's a family event."

Augustin Gomez, 31, and Jesse Gonzalez, 28, drove from Monterrey Tuesday for a daylong trip to Mercedes. Both said they spent about $400 on clothes and shoes for their children.

"We come for the prices, and we'll be returning before Christmas," Gomez said.

"They don't have all these stores in Monterrey," Gonzalez said.

Alicia Mansur, a stylish 26-year-old from Ciudad Victoria, Mexico, said she shopped in the U.S. about six times a year, usually spending about $1,000 at a time. She said her friends told her about the new mall and she couldn't wait to come.

...

One of the reasons the stores are on the US side of the border is that the developers and store owners do not have to pay mordita to local officials to get permits. That also permits them to sell at lower prices that benefit the consumer. While poor Mexicans are usually the subject of most stories about people coming into this country, there are many wealthy Mexicans to fly into Houston to go shopping at the Galleria. No word is given in the story on whether unions object to this cross border commerce. My guess they would probably complain about the country of origin of many of the goods sold.