Business
African American purchasing power now projected to hit $1.1 trillion by 2015
Black purchasing power in the United States. SOURCE/ReachingBlackConsumers.com
(PRNewswire) – Nashville, Tennessee – As the U.S. economy begins to regain some traction, it has become apparent the African American population is now an economic force to be reckoned with.
Their purchasing power is projected to be US$1.1 trillion by 2015. According to the Nielsen Company study, “African-American Consumers: Still Vital, Still Growing,” this population’s growth outpaces the rest of the population by 30 percent. And, the demographic is increasingly younger, is more educated and has higher incomes than is commonly believed.
Between 2000 and 2009, the number of African Americans attending some college or earning degrees has grown: 45 percent of men; 54 percent of women. Households earning US$75,000 or more grew by more than 60 percent, faster than the rest of the population. African American’s average income nationwide is US$47,290.
Increasing income and education have caused notable on-line trends. During July 2011 there were 23.9 million active Black Internet users: 76 percent visited social networking sites; 54 percent visited a travel site. Mass merchandisers gained 50 percent of the on-line users, the other 50 percent spent time on current events and global news sites. While on-line nearly 13 percent made airline purchases or reservations; just under 10 percent made hotel reservations.
The Nielsen Company study, commissioned by the National Newspaper Publishers Association, sheds light on the economic potential of African Americans and the important trends in this community. The report’s findings will be presented at the June conference of the National Association of Black Accountants conference in Nashville, Tennessee.
So what does this all mean in business terms? It means African Americans wield tremendous purchasing power. The Nielsen study showed numerous shopping trends, mostly for household, health and beauty, travel, smart phones and child related items. They have an average of four television sets per household and prefer premium cable channels.
Forty-four percent of all new mobile phones purchased by African Americans are smartphones. Sixty-eight percent used their smartphones for shopping information.
