Hispanic Millennials and Clothing: How they Decide what to Buy. [INSIGHT]

By Insight Tr3s

Last year’s Tr3s Millennial study revealed that when it comes to style, Hispanic Millennials want to be “unique, but not a freak.” They aim to stand out and be original — without being seen as weird. So how do they make their choices about how to dress?

To answer that question, we analyzed Simmons data on adult Hispanic Millennials’ views on apparel and shopping. We found that Millennial “recessionista” values such as durability, loyalty to stores with good prices and shopping around for the best deal were popular.

Also we see the “Comfort Fashionista” who dresses to please themselves yet keeps up with the latest styles (and loves to try them out), makes a statement with their look and it all has to be comfortable!

Here are more details on key findings from a Tr3s original analysis of Simmons data on attitudes about apparel adult Hispanic Millennials (ages 18 to 29):

o Comfort is the most important factor in determining what clothes they buy. 70% of adult Hispanic Millennials agree with this statement – and it’s even higher among those born in the US (75%). While it ranks high among both genders, females are more likely than males to say that comfort is essential (74% F1829, 65% M1829).

o Being able to make clothes last a long time is also very important. 68% of adult Hispanic Millennials agree that getting lasting use out of their clothing is key – and the US-born tend to agree even more (75%).

o They primarily dress to please themselves — but they also believe it’s important to look attractive to others. Nearly two-thirds of Hispanics 18-29 dress to please themselves. This skews higher for the US-born segment (69%), especially females (75%). 56% of adult Hispanic Millennials say it’s important to look attractive to others – and this is also higher among those born in the US (60%), females in particular (64%).

They are loyal to favorite clothing brands. 55% of Hispanics 18-29 say that they have a few favorite clothing brands that they always stick with. The US-born segment is also more likely to agree with this statement (60%), especially females (62%).

o They shop at favorite stores because the prices are good. 49% of adult Hispanic Millennials say they usually shop at favorite stores because they have the prices they like. This was a little higher among females than males (52% F18-29, 47% M18-29), and slightly higher among foreign-born than US-born (51% FB P18-29, 48% USB P18-29).

o For relatively expensive items, they shop at different stores to make certain they’re getting the best price. 57% of Hispanics 18-29 shop around for a deal on pricier items – and an even higher proportion of those born in the US (60%). US-born F18-29 are most likely to engage in this practice (68%).

o US-born F18-29 are bigger fashionistas than their non-Hispanic peers. 60% of US-born Hispanic F18-29 say they like to experiment with new clothing styles (compared with 43% of non-Hispanic F18-29). US-born Hispanic F18-29 are also more likely than non-Hispanic F18-29 to enjoy keeping up with the latest fashions (43% vs. 37%), enjoy making a unique fashion statement (35% vs. 28%), no longer wear clothes they wore a year ago because they’ve gone out of style (24% vs. 15%), and to usually be first among their friends to try new clothing styles (24% vs. 18%).

Source: Experian Simmons, Winter 2012 NHCS Adult Survey 12-month