Buenos Dias Customer Base to grow 35% from Crossover Appeal to non-Latinos
In case you haven't noticed, look around and you will see a subtle change going on in your city, your state and your country. It's a wave that's enhancing the flavor of our food, swaying the rhythm of our music and changing the accents of our pop idols. Some people call it the Latinization of America.
The Latino community is growing so much and at such a rapid pace that Hispanics are no longer just the fastest-growing minority, but the fastest-growing sector of our community as a whole. Hispanic influence is giving Americans more choices in the kitchen, at the supermarket, in the movie theaters, on the playing fields, at the record shops and in the nation's art galleries.
There is no reason to believe that this growing trend is going to slow down. Demographers estimate that by 2020, there could be 60 million Hispanics in the U.S. Most non-Hispanics have already noticed the changes taking place in their communities by the Latinization of America and they seem to love it.
The increased awareness of traditional Hispanic foods among the general population is directly correlated to the larger numbers of Hispanic individuals living in the U.S. As more people from South and Central America move to this nation, their native foods will become important elements in the already vibrant Hispanic Food Market.
Once a novelty, Latino food is turning mainstream, fueled by more Anglo interest in exotic foods, thereby becoming one of the largest and fastest growing food categories in the market. So, the growing Hispanic population is exerting a profound cultural effect upon the U.S. as a whole, and consumers from many regions and ethnic backgrounds have developed a craving for "el sabor Latino." As their palates become fluent in Spanish, consumers are moving beyond Mexican to explore a host of Hispanic foods and flavors.
Developing products for different ethnic groups presents a challenge for many marketers, particularly when authenticity is the goal. In-depth research and travels abroad breed knowledge of other cultures' cuisine. Ethnic-food preparation will become increasingly authentic as the mainstream population demands more variety, and as various segments of the market become more diverse. Globalization breeds familiarity with ingredients once thought of as exotic. Many of these distinctive flavors complement baked goods, leaving endless possibilities for adaptation into mainstream markets. That translation from authentic to mainstream requires not only identifying a taste or flavor, it also requires adapting the products to meet the needs of an audience with more moderate taste buds.
A savvy product development team could take the concept, and with some appropriate substitutions of content and flavors that would appeal to a mass audience, create a winning baked product. This is the sort of product that a manufacturer of mainstream baked goods is ultimately going to go after. In the near future, more than 35 percent of growth in ethnic foods is going to come from mainstream consumers. With more companies buying or importing foreign brands and developing their own with a certain ethnic twist, the crossover trend is expected to only get bigger.
