Beyond Cinco de Mayo: Celebrating Everyday Fiestas to Win the U.S Hispanic Consumer

With such a vibrant culture and rich sense of togetherness, it’s no wonder Latinos love fiestas. If there’s an opportunity to party, we’ll find an excuse to turn up the music and celebrate together! However, many brands and retailers may be missing out on enduring, year-long cultural connections with the U.S. Hispanic audience by improperly focusing on a single holiday such as Cinco de Mayo, especially when nearly half of Hispanic consumers believe the American holiday misrepresents Hispanic culture. (Collage Group, 2020)

And while the calendar is full of authentic traditional Hispanic holidays like Día de Muertos and Christmas time Posadas, the biggest opportunity for brands lies in the daily celebrations, such as birthdays, quinceañeras, weddings, anniversaries, graduations, and everyday family get-togethers.

When it comes to fiestas, Latinos pull out all the stops

From uncles, primos and abuelos, to friends, co-workers and even the neighbors, everyone’s invited to Latino fiestas. Larger and more frequent celebrations also mean Hispanics spend more on them: for instance, they are 27% more likely than the general market to buy holiday and party decorations. (MRI Simmons, Fall 2021)

In addition, U.S. Hispanics enjoy spirits and mixed drinks when socializing and for special occasions creating opportunities for beverage companies and retailers alike. (Mintel, 2020)

Getting more granular, Quinceañeras, Latino’s unique version of a Sweet Sixteen birthday bash, represent a huge market opportunity. According to LAWeekly.com, around 400,000 Hispanic girls celebrate their 15th birthday each year and their families are generally willing to spend an average of $15,000 to $25,000 on their birthday extravaganza, with family and friends helping to pay for the venue, bar, party favors, and wedding-like quinceañera dress. Get this: quinceañera and Sweet 16 parties are a $680 billion-a-year industry and growing.

Cultural insights: the key to unlocking the “Fiesta” market opportunity

While the market’s size and growth potential are enough to want to hop on the Latino party bus, leveraging the full potential of this opportunity requires a deep and immersive understanding of the audience’s culture and the nuanced meanings behind each celebration.

These cultural and consumer behavior insights allow brands to identify key moments to establish a genuine connection with the market, while avoiding off-putting stereotypes or the undesirable notion of cultural appropriation. After all, the last thing you want is to be perceived as an unwelcome party crasher!

The good news is that firms specialized in engaging diverse consumers exist now and can help brands grow today. Want to learn more about how you can capitalize on U.S. Hispanics’ deeply rooted love for celebration and togetherness? Let’s have a chat and get this fiesta started!