The Hispanic Customer Segment – Who, Why, and How

In retail, we spend a lot of time talking about customer segments, asking questions like: Who is spending more money? Who is visiting our stores more often? Who is visiting our competitors? One specific segment that is gaining more and more attention is the Hispanic customer segment.

If you are anything like me, you do your fair share of keeping up with news and trends, so you’ve heard the word Hispanic used quite often. But who exactly falls in this segment, why is the Hispanic segment so important, and how to we get them to shop with us? Let’s review…

This Hispanic segment is important to anyone interested in selling mass quantities of a product or service because it is growing rapidly, and putting a lot of money into the economy. Don’t believe me? Let’s put some data behind my assertions.

• 1 in 6 shoppers are Hispanic.
• 1 in 3 babies will be born to a Latina mom this year.
• The Hispanic segment has $1.3 trillion – yes, trillion - in buying power.
• The retail spending of the Hispanic segment will nearly double over the next decade.
• 70% of Hispanics in the US are under 40 (…which means they have a lot of years left to shop loyally)

Go back to that first bullet point. 1 in 6 shoppers are Hispanic. Think about that! If you aren’t serving 1 in 6 shoppers out there, your pharmacy is missing out on a lot of business. Let me give you a little activity to help you grasp what you could be missing. Within your store, what is your average basket spend? How many customers come through your store each day? Let’s multiply those two together to get an average sales number per day. Now, reduce that by 1/6. Yikes! Unless you’ve got some sort of radical strategy in your pocket to significantly increase basket spend overnight, that’s got to make you a little fearful.

The good news is, this customer segment doesn’t ask for a lot from us as retailers. A few key changes to how you can communicate and serve these consumers and its possible that they will keep coming back to you.

1)     Communicate in both Spanish and English. Look for opportunities to include Spanish translation on product packaging or labeling, on your digital platforms – including your website, and in print marketing.

• According to a Nielson report: 80% of the Hispanic population in the US learned Spanish as their first language. Even if they are also fluent in English, they may prefer to communicate in Spanish. Easy enough!

2)     Carry authentic products. Data shows that Hispanics are more likely to give their loyalty to retailers who offer them authentic products they’re seeking. This is especially true in the grocery or supermarket environment.

• 28% of Hispanic shoppers report shopping at local store that offer authentic products versus only 4% of non-Hispanic shoppers.

3)     Appeal to a larger family size. Hispanics often have larger household sizes that are comprised of multiple generations. This means, they are making purchasing decisions for multiple persons. Help them do this efficiently and effectively.

• In your pharmacy, offer an array of services to appeal to everyone – diabetes management, blood pressure monitoring, medication flavoring, etc.
• If you offer groceries as well, consider larger pack sizes to keep the family in stock in staple items between trips.
• Or if you are a mass merchant, offer inventive organization solutions for large households.

4)     Make shopping enjoyable for the entire family. Hispanics report shopping with someone else more than those shoppers in non-Hispanic segments. So, you must consider that you aren’t just out to make mom’s shopping trip enjoyable. You may need to be sure you’re also meeting the shopping expectations of grandparents and young children as well. Look for ways to engage with everyone at different points in your store.

• Sampling in the bakery
• Lollipop handouts in the pharmacy
• Easily identifiable and approachable customer service team members in the store
• Clearly defined layout with aisle markers

I challenge you to take a thoughtful look at your store and your business as it stands today and ask yourself if you’re meeting the needs and expectation of the Hispanic customer segment. With little time, effort, and financial output, you can better position your business to win consumers, loyalty, and the all-mighty dollar.