Reyes Eve Sale! Open ’til Midnight!

There are many benefits to being a Hispanic kid growing up in the United States: agua de horchata, pan dulce, big families, your own secret language the other kids don’t speak, etc.

But none perhaps is greater than your own, unique and special celebration at the end of the holiday season.

Hispanic families, like many, exchange Christmas gifts on the 25^th and ring in the New Year on the 31^st. But come New Year’s Day, the season of gifts, candy, Rudolph and trees starts to quickly fade away for most kids. However, many recent-arrival Mexican, Central American and Caribbean families start preparing for round two.  Parents point to the night sky and Orion’s Belt constellation and tell their kids, “Mira mi’jo, ya se acercan más los reyes” — “The three kings are almost here.” For these kids, Santa Claus may be gone, but Gaspar, Melchor y Baltazar are on their way. And on the morning of January 6, outside the front door next to their shoes, millions of Hispanic kids will find yet another of helping of toys.

I can only imagine what so many school kids must think when Carlitos goes to school that day and brags about the new Lego set “Los Reyes” brought him that morning. “Lucky little Hispanic kids.”

The Hispanic market delivers a potentially powerful retail opportunity with the Three Kings. Every January 5, one can go to any toy store and witness the last-minute rush. I’ve been there many times myself, buying toys at the last second. It never fails that I run into to dozens of other Hispanic parents doing the same thing. It’s comical how the clerks always seem confused by the sudden rush of Spanish-speakers in their stores that day.

A few retailers have figured it out, and do it right. Take Wal-Mart for example: http://instoresnow.walmart.com/Esp-Dia-de-Reyes.aspx. You can visit the store and take a picture of the family with the Three Kings and buy a rosca (a traditional holiday bread) while you’re there. Great tips on how to decorate your house or cook up a great Three Kings Day meal can be found on the website. Spanish-language TV and radio spots promoting Three Kings Day sales have been known to hit the air in select markets as well.

Despite Wal-Mart’s cultural fluency, there remains a surprising lack of activity around this potentially retail-saving holiday. In a world where the annual health of a store depends on the holiday season, and where recessions have twice the effect they have on other businesses, hype around Three Kings Day is completely absent. I often wonder how most major retailers let this opportunity slip through their hands. There are few, if any, TV or radio ads, rarely a Three Kings picture booth at the mall, and no “Black-Friday-type” retail buildup.

So, retailers: I invite you to break it out this year. It isn’t too late. Black Friday was only so-so? Cyber Monday didn’t break the bank either? So let’s see if “Reyes Eve” can put you over the top. Stores in any top 25 Hispanic market should be staying open until midnight and launching massive Three Kings Day Sales on New Year’s Day. Learn from the Wal-Mart example and serve some traditional rosca de reyes (but add some “Chocolate Abuelita” for dipping) in your stores. Run a few ads in Spanish. Go Hallmark, Hispanic-style, on this holiday and find a way to start breaking out of the recession. Over time, I bet other non-Hispanic families will start to adopt the tradition too, and before you know it, we’ll have another retail-boom week on the calendars.

Buena suerte, Happy “Reyes Eve” sales, and if you haven't already, may you discover the power of the Hispanic market in the process.

Email Drew if you think Hispanidad might be a good partner to help you take advantage of "Reyes Eve;"  dwilson@heinrich.com.