In 1554, Jesuit priests founded a mission on a small hill, strategically close to the River Tietê. By 1711 São Paulo was big enough to be known as a city. As coffee growing flourished in the surrounding areas of São Paulo due to the tropical climate and soil ideal for growing the bean, São served as a successful coffee trade center. When the railroad was built through Sao Paul in 1867, São Paulo became one the largest coffee exporters in the world. In 1890, then-federal capital Rio de Janeiro housed 500,000 inhabitants, São Paulo just 60,000.

From 1554 to the late 1800s, coffee growers were reliant on slaves to grow these beans. However, in 1888 slavery was abolished and São Paulo began to search for other skilled laborers from around the world. Workers from Japan, Italy, Germany and Eastern Europe flocked to the city to find opportunity. Waves of immigration continued throughout the 19 th and 20 th century, giving São Paulo a distinct entrepreneurial character and diverse identity.

During the post-world war era Sao Paulo became one of America's largest car manufacturer. By the mid-1950s São Paulo exceeded Rio in population and kept growing. The capital of Brazil was moved from Rio to Brasilia in 1960.   Recently, domestic immigration has caused São Paulo’s population to continue to grow, so much so that São Paulo sometimes seems like a city busting out of its seams. However, the workers from for instance the poor northeast of Brazil continues to stimulate the economy and provide much-needed manual labor.