Footwear retailers, take notice. Hispanic shoppers — a powerful, fast-growing group of consumers — are dishing out major dollars both online and in store.
According to insights from “The Hispanic Shopping Activity Service” – the product of an alliance between the NPD Group and Univision Communications – Hispanic Americans spend 20 percent of their dollars online, a higher percentage than that of all Americans (17 percent) and all non-Hispanics (16 percent).
The amount of money spent per online buying visit by bilingual Hispanics is $72 compared with $68, the total market average, according to the study.
When making a purchase online or in store, Hispanics are more than twice as likely as non-Hispanics to put footwear in their baskets, and they are particularly important in the specialty retail sectors, where they account for more than 25 percent of all buying visits.
“When bilingual and Spanish-language-dominant consumers buy, they really buy,” said Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst of the NPD Group. “Their shopping behaviors don’t conform to the patterns of other Americans. And it’s important for retailers and marketers to understand the differences.”
“We know that Hispanics tend to have larger households and that shopping is a family affair, and we know this has a significant impact on what they buy, how they buy, and where they buy,” added Roberto Ruiz, executive vice president of strategy & insights at Univision Communications Inc. “We also know that the U.S. Hispanic population is growing rapidly, which makes understanding this consumer crucial to the long-term growth strategy for any retailer.”
