ABSTRACT
The North American Free Trade agreement (NAFTA) went into effect on 1 January 1994. It is an agreement among the three countries of Canada, The United States and Mexico to eliminate all internal tariffs and thus facilitate the free flow of goods and services across their shared borders over a 15 year period. NAFT a created an internal market of over 400 million potential consumers, of whom 300 million reside in the most affluent country in the world. The agreement covers the movement of an almost unlimited supply of goods, natural resources, services and investment capital. This massive, vibrant, rich and varied market can be considered both a business person’s dream and a marketer’s worst nightmare. In order to successfully operate in the North American market, marketers must understand why NAFTA was created by the agreement (especially in contrast with the European Union) and how the three markets of Canada, the United states and Mexico can be imagined as one big market or multiple, potentially lucrative market segments.
