I read somewhere that the US has the highest number of consumers per capita in the world.

When you stop to consider that the people companies target are in the middle and upper classes, you have to wonder what would happen if U.S. companies targeted a new market, the lower income people who can’t afford to be consumers of high priced goods.

A few entrepreneurs in India are doing just that.

Having decided that the luxury item market is maxed out, they are tapping the lower income market by providing cheap but serviceable items.

The first thing that comes to mind is a small car that sells for the approximate amount of US $2,500.

There was a lot of hoop-la when it premiered a few years ago, with disclaimers in the US about how it did not have a lot of safety/environmental features required here. But over the past few years the company has upgraded the car with an eye on exporting it around the world.

The price will probably go up a little as the cars are upgraded, but just think how well a cheap but cute little five passenger car that gets 55.5 miles per gallon and goes 65 MPH would sell here, as long as the quality was acceptable.

The company making these cute, brightly colored little cars (Tato Motors) has hired the former European head of General Motors as the chief executive to oversee the expansion of the company.

And just in case you want to be an elitist and assume that Tato Motors cannot make good cars, bear in mind that they also produce Jaguars and Land Rovers.

The second inexpensive device India has come up with is a hand-held computer that will initially sell for US $35 with an eventual anticipated selling price of US $10.

These Linux-based computers are aimed at lower income people and students, from university level on down.

The company making these computers, which come loaded with basic necessities that include internet browsers, teleconferencing capability, and PDF readers, said the introduction of this product is for profit. They want to reach a new target audience.

But just because that target audience is poor doesn’t mean the product is inferior. The company envisions every university student in India owning one of these babies, and they claim the quality and software will be more than sufficient for the needs of these students.

Guess what would be the hottest Christmas present in the US if a decent hand-held computer was available here at such an affordable price.

But this is a pipe dream in our land of opportunity, where an up-scale consumer and high price tag seems to be the norm when it comes to quality products.