Study: Hispanic consumers important to jewelers

Port Washington, N.Y.--When it comes to shopping, Hispanics are “particularly important” to jewelry retailers, recent research by Univision and the NPD Group shows.

According to the research, Hispanics account for 25 percent or more of all buying visits--in-store or online--in the jewelry, off-price and footwear specialty retail channels. Jewelry retailers included in the study were Kay Jewelers, Pandora, Zales, Fossil, Jared the Galleria of Jewelry, Cartier, Tiffany & Co. and similar industry businesses.

The research also showed that bilingual Hispanics spend 20 percent of their money online, more than all Americans, who spend 17 percent of their dollars online, and non-Hispanics, who spend 16 percent online. (They study did not cover the “why” behind this shopping behavior.)

Hispanics spend an average of $72 per online visit, higher than the total market average of $68.

“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,” said Roberto Ruiz, executive vice president of strategy and insights at Univision Communications, which conducted The Hispanic Shopping Activity Service study alongside NPD Group.

He adds that the U.S. Hispanic population is growing rapidly, which makes understanding Hispanic consumers crucial to the long-term growth strategy for any retailer.

The NPD Group/Univision research also found that Hispanics are more than two times as likely as non-Hispanics to buy footwear, accessories, video games, sporting goods, music and software.

In addition, shoppers who are Spanish-language dominant--meaning they reported that Spanish is the primary language they use at home--spend more per buying visit than non-Hispanics, at $61 compared to $53.

“When bilingual and Spanish-language dominant consumers buy, they really buy,” said Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst at 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.”