Thread: Publication explores Hispanics' economic power

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Publication explores Hispanics' economic power


By DANIEL GILBERT
dgilbert@potomacnews.com
Wednesday, November 30, 2005


While legislators on Capitol Hill are concerned with stemming the tide of Hispanic immigration by securing borders, business leaders are celebrating the genesis of a consumer force estimated to have a buying power of $1 trillion in less than five years.

The economic importance of the U.S. Hispanic community comprises the core of WOW! Quick Facts: Hispanics, a new publication by Diversity Best Practices and Business Women’s Network. WOW! was released on Tuesday afternoon at the National Press Club.

The publication provides a rough breakdown of the Hispanic population, marketplace and entrepreneurial sectors of the economy. For example, it lists where Hispanics are spending their money (groceries, phone services, and major appliances), and where they are not spending (health care, education, personal insurance).

Imbedded in the almanac are various market trends: Hispanics led all minority groups undergoing cosmetic surgery in 2004, and Hispanics buy about 15 percent of all movie tickets.

WOW! has a few surprises. Despite lower levels of schooling than other immigrant groups, Latinos are Internet savvy. More than a quarter of 9.3 million Latino households shop online, and Hispanics are more likely than non-Hispanic whites to look for new job information on the Internet.

Marcela Berland, founder and president of LatinInsights - a market research firm specializing on the U.S. Latino market - called the facts published in WOW! A “wake up call for America.�

“There are an estimated 50 million Hispanics in the U.S. What leader can ignore that?� she asked. “It is time for America to take a look at us, and understand who Hispanics really are.�

But large numbers may fail to convey the steady, rapid growth of the Hispanic population. “Every minute, there are an additional 2.5 Hispanics arriving in the U.S.,� noted Gilbert Casellas, chair of Hispanic Federation. “The increased diversity that the Hispanic population creates is permanent and inescapable. It means long-term, profound changes to the very fabric of American society,� he said.

WOW! is being promoted both as a fact book, and as a series of guidelines for how to tap into the Hispanic market. According to WOW!, the U.S. is now a place where salsa sells better than ketchup, and where breakfast burritos are consumed more often than pancakes. For those business leaders who can successfully reach out to Hispanic consumers, there is a profit to be made.

Brent Wilkes, the executive director of the League of United Latin American Citizens, criticized those who would deport illegal aliens on a massive scale. “A lot of people think that deporting an immigrant will create a job for an American to do at a higher wage. But this logic is not well thought-out,� he said. “Jobs may go overseas if we can’t do the jobs at competitive prices in the U.S.�

Still, much of the money immigrant workers make is sent to Latin America. WOW! notes that an estimated $45 billion was remitted to Latin America and the Caribbean in 2004. Remittances to Latin America are estimated to reach $100 billion by 2012. An important question for businesses to address: Will the immigrants stay?

Wilkes seemed to think so. “A lot of immigrants will end up staying. The longer they are here, the more they will marry and start families. There needs to be a mechanism for people to stay, and longer than the six-year guest worker program,� he said.

Please exuse this incredibly biased article...I know it's awfully early in the morning to stomach this...

The publication provides a rough breakdown of the Hispanic population, marketplace and entrepreneurial sectors of the economy. For example, it lists where Hispanics are spending their money (groceries, phone services, and major appliances), and where they are not spending (health care, education, personal insurance).

I am sure alot of us would have more "buying power" If we didn't have to pay health and auto insurance! Get real!!! Food, phone and toys, oh, if I could I be so lucky!!!

Wilkes seemed to think so. “A lot of immigrants will end up staying. The longer they are here, the more they will marry and start families. There needs to be a mechanism for people to stay, and longer than the six-year guest worker program,� he said.

They have no intention of ever leaving...The guest worker program isn't enough? NO AMNESTY!!!