Ethnic Shoppers Often Fly Under Radar

JULIE GALLAGHER

LAS VEGAS — Undocumented ethnic consumers present lucrative opportunities for retailers that are willing to gauge their numbers and meet their needs, Raphael Cuellar, president of ShopRite of Passaic/Clifton, told attendees during the “Understanding Multicultural Consumers” session held here during last week's Food Marketing Institute Show.

“According to U.S. Census data, Passaic, N.J., has 41,000 households, averaging three-member families with a median income of $43,000, but this is all wrong,” said Cuellar, whose company is a member of Wakefern Food Corp. “There are a ton of undocumented people, especially in ethnic cultures, so it shifts the numbers dramatically.”

In actuality, the predominantly Hispanic city is home to between 65,000 and 70,000 households, averaging six members with a median income of $35,000, Cuellar said he has learned.

To get a better handle on the Hispanic consumers who comprise 70% of his store's shoppers, Cuellar engages them in discussions about their wants and needs.

Members of the Hispanic ethnic group make up about 15% of the U.S. population and possess $1 trillion in purchasing power, according to Phoenix Multicultural Group.

“Ask your customers questions; don't be scared of them,” Cuellar advised attendees. “Make them part of your family; let them know that you're interested in what they want; ask them what they find insulting.”

The practice is especially critical given that ethnic shoppers are often apprehensive about asking questions or requesting a product, stressed Monica Villalobos, marketing director of Phoenix Multicultural Group and co-owner of ShopRite of Passaic/Clifton.

“Emerging groups are less vocal,” she told attendees. “It's difficult enough to integrate into American culture, so these shoppers aren't apt to complain or ask for something.”

The difficulty of anticipating ethnic shopper demand is compounded by a shift in the preferences of acculturated ethnic consumers that is known as retro-acculturation.

“Retailers might think, ‘I've got these shoppers covered, since they're already eating American food,’ but we're noticing a trend where immigrants are adopting the American culture and then deciding they're interested in going back to the foods that their mother and grandmother used to make for them.”

Grocers must also consider the message sent by merchandising Basmati rice beside a box of Uncle Ben's.

“If you integrate an [ethnic] item into a general category and find out that it is insulting to a consumer since they can no longer find it, don't do it,” said Cuellar, who broadcasts Spanish-language music in his store and sometimes entertains shoppers with live mariachi bands. “Interview customers, go out and get that information to determine where things should be placed.”

“The pros of merchandising ethnic items in the international aisle are that members of these groups know exactly where to go,” said Villalobos. “But the con is that the shopping experience is inconsistent with the way that they're living their lives. They're integrated into American culture, so the experience should be more integrated.”