As reported by Forbes, recent data indicates there’s one group they should be paying special attention to, particularly given their propensity to spend big around the holidays: Hispanic Millennials. Here’s why.
They have disposable income.
Young Hispanics between the ages of 20 and 29 carry about $10,000 less debt than other Millennials, according to a September study by PNC Bank. The average Hispanic twenty-something owes $18,000, versus $27,800 for their peers.
Hispanics in this age group are also more likely (45%) to be saving on rent by living with their parents than their counterparts (39%), as well as being more likely than not to know their credit score (57%).
They might still earn less than young people from other backgrounds, but young Hispanics are getting richer, and fast. Nielsen’s Hispanic Retail 360 study for 2013 shows an 89% increase in Hispanic Millenial-led households earning between $50,000 and $100,000 a year in the last decade alone.
In 2003, 11% of American homes with a Hispanic twenty-something at the helm made over $75,000 a year. In 2013, that number has increased to 21%.
They shop less in-store, but spend more.
Hispanic Millennials spend an average of $2 less per shopping transaction than white Americans in their age range, according to Nielsen. However, annually, they spend more on retail purchases — to the tune of almost 10%.
They shop less in-store, but they buy more key items; they make “calculated” buys during back-to-school season as well as before Christmas and Mother’s Day. They spend proportionally more on clothes and shoes than other demographics, according to data released by the Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies. Hispanic women spent an estimated $3.3 billion on brand-name footwear between 2012 and 2013, representing 18% of the total women’s fashion shoe market.
They’re smartphone shoppers.
According to the 2010 US Census, the median age of Hispanics in the U.S. hovers around 28 — a veritable jackpot for tech-savvy retailers. Across the board, Hispanics lead the way in mobile internet adoption. Over 75% of Hispanics use the web on their phones, compared with 73% of African-Americans and 60% of whites, according to eMarketer data for 2013.
Nielsen research shows that young Hispanics own more smartphones than any other Millennial group. They use apps more, they shop via their phones more and — in a boon for advertisers — they watch around an hour more mobile video per month than other demographics.
Source: Published originally on Forbes as Debt Free, Smartphone Savvy, Big Spenders: Hispanic Millennials Are Retail's Holy Grail byClare O'Connor, December 12, 2013.