Changing Demography and Your Future

Are Latinos Changing the U.S. Consumer?

October 14, 2009

An Oct. 12 AdAge.com article–New U.S. Census to Reveal Major Shift: No More Joe Consumer–pointed out that we have become a nation of diversity and that the sameness of the U.S. consumer will be gone forever.  It is the “sameness” and “will be gone forever” part of the previous statement that is puzzling.  The U.S. has been a diverse nation and market since the late 1700s.  There is nothing the same about any of our ethnic factions.  

We are a nation of immigrants with very diverse tastes, consumption, cultures, beliefs and habits.  And the strength and beauty of our nation is that we can support so many really different people and still be the most prosperous nation on earth.

What is being referenced in this article is obviously is the fact that the country’s most recent immigrants, the Latinos, are really going to change things because there are so many of them.  Many believe that the 2010 census will reveal that the U.S. Latino population will top 50 million, which is about 16 percent of the total estimated 2010 U.S. population of 309 million, and up from 14 percent just a few years ago.  Latino fertility is the real story, however, as they are responsible for over 1 million or about 25 percent of live births per year. 

We are sure that the 2010 U.S. Census will be the biggest and most expensive market research in our history as it is expected to cost almost $15 billion.  Is it worth the money? We think so. The information should tell a very valuable story if the Latinos don’t boycott the process.  Some extreme Latino factions have threatened to do just that if the anti-immigration rhetoric doesn’t subside.