NEW YORK, Jan. 18, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The multicultural Millennial population consists of almost half of the Millennial generation (42%) and represents local markets that drive 47% of the total U.S. gross domestic product. In a new report released today, "Multicultural Millennials: The Multiplier Effect," Nielsen (NYSE: NLSN) explores key aspects of this population, including demographic information and trends, analysis of their choices of home cities, and how culture, food and technology are essential points of entry for reaching this generation.

Spending more than $65 million each year and influencing upward of $1 trillion in total consumer spending, multicultural Millennials are bridging the gaps between their birth culture, their own children, and mainstream society. Most multicultural Millennials are fully ambicultural, shifting from what was once a dominant family-based culture to a posture that blends a variety of cultures into a new mainstream. The profound influence on their peers as well as on both younger and older generations – deemed the "multiplier effect" – can be harnessed as marketers and advertisers to make efforts to expand their market share.

"In addition to the influence they command on their more non-Hispanic white peers, there is another reason marketers and advertisers should be interested in multicultural Millennials: many of them are first generation professionals who are in prime acquisition mode," said Courtney Jones, vice president of Multicultural Growth & Strategy at Nielsen. "A growing disposable income among multicultural Millennials is a ripe opportunity for companies that court them and make an effort to cultivate and earn their business."

Key highlights from the report include:

Top Metropolitan Regions

• Today, 21 of 25 of the most populated U.S. counties are a multicultural majority, with 44% of multicultural Millennials choosing to live in the Top 10 Nielsen DMAs, including New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Houston.

Influence of Millennials' Preferences for Multicultural Flavors

• While almost half of Millennials want to purchase foods from companies that harbor a strong social purpose or mission, it is almost as important that companies offer multicultural products, with 44% of Millennials saying that it's important or essential for their foods to include "multicultural flavors."

What Multicultural Millennials are Buying

• When exploring the top consumer categories that multicultural Millennials purchase:
  •  African American Millennials spend more than average on ethnic hair and beauty products (80% share)
  • Asian American Millennials spend more on skin care preparations (10% share) than the average consumer
  • Hispanic Millennials spend more on dried vegetables and grains (10% share) compared to the average consumer

Digital Connections

• Multicultural Millennials who are active on their mobile devices spend over $65 billion per year – with an increasing majority of those dollars being spent online – and influence more than $1 trillion in total CPG and entertainment spending.
• Nearly half use their mobile devices to compare prices and browse when shopping, and almost 80% agree that the internet is a great place to buy products – which is easier for that generation to do since they maintain and value their connection to the internet during the entire day.

For additional insights, download Nielsen's Multicultural Millennial: The Multiplier Effect LITE report. For more detail and expanded data and information, purchase Nielsen's Multicultural Millennial: The Multiplier Effect Full Report in the Nielsen Store.

ABOUT NIELSEN

Nielsen Holdings plc (NYSE: NLSN) is a global performance management company that provides a comprehensive understanding of what consumers watch and buy. Nielsen's Watch segment provides media and advertising clients with Nielsen Total Audience measurement services for all devices on which content—video, audio and text—is consumed. The Buy segment offers consumer packaged goods manufacturers and retailers the industry's only global view of retail performance measurement. By integrating information from its Watch and Buy segments and other data sources, Nielsen also provides its clients with analytics that help improve performance. Nielsen, an S&P 500 company, has operations in over 100 countries, covering more than 90% of the world's population. For more information, visit www.nielsen.com.

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SOURCE Nielsen