Retail Gold Rush – Hispanic Purchasing Power Becomes a Major Player

Eduardo's Reception Hall hosts its first event at Desert Sky Mall, Phoenix, AZ 

ICSC has been on this kick for a few years now.  A couple of years ago I was lucky to attend the first National Hispanic Initiative event in San Antonio, Texas.  The site was packed with everyone wanting to know what it was and what to do about it.  We were flooded with statistics that all boiled down to this:  Hispanics are the next Baby Boomers.  Those who study markets understand what this means - money. Like all businesses retail must go where the customers are to be successful.

At RECon last month the session ‘The Retail Gold Rush’ reinforced the reality that the Hispanic market is large and growing and our businesses need to plan to take advantage of it. The panelists Chiqui Cartagena, Maria Contreras-Sweet and Colin Crawford stressed that the Hispanic buying power is growing due to increasing affluence, larger family size and continued immigration.  

In Phoenix, Arizona the Desert Sky Mall, with the help of José De Jesús Legaspi, is one of the first malls modified to address this growing market.  José’s strategy was basically very simple:  he made changes that he knew would appeal to Hispanic shoppers.  It also helped that the demographic surrounding this mall is highly Hispanic.  He knows retail dies if you do not accommodate those close to you.

By happenstance CSHQA was able to add to the Hispanic flair at Desert Sky through our client Jaime Martinez who purchased an empty shoe retail building on the mall perimeter.  Jaime and his father Eduardo, successful businessmen from Mexico, saw the potential of this vacant building and converted it to Salon De Fiestas or otherwise known as Eduardo’s Reception Hall. This turned out to be a good addition to the mall offering a great rental space for family and community events.

To wrap up: The next big wave is the Hispanic market and those who can ride it will have fun and make some money on the way.  –

Jorge Pierson, AIA, LEED AP is an Associate with CSHQA and Regional Manager of CSHQA's Phoenix office.  He has practiced architecture in Phoenix for over 30 years providing planning, design and project management of retail, resort, residential and industrial projects throughout the Southwest.

The Legaspi Company is a full-service retail real estate firm focused on the Hispanic market.  Founded by José De Jesús Legaspi, the firm identifies and capitalizes on untapped opportunities to revitalize depressed retail malls and serve the Hispanic community.  www.thelegaspi.com

In the third and final part of this Retail series we will take a closer look at elements that contribute to a successful Hispanic Shopping Mall.