It is a myth that Hispanics only buy name brand products and don’t buy private label or store brands. In fact, Hispanics purchase private labels at the same rate as non-Hispanics across all food categories. When it comes to the beverage industry, only a slightly higher percentage of non-Hispanics drink private-label beverages (49 percent vs. 45 percent for Hispanics). Given that Hispanics, on average, spend 17 percent more on beverages than non-Hispanics despite their lower income levels, it is interesting to learn which name brand beverages they are not willing to trade down on and which store brands they feel justified in buying.
Looking at private-label brands, the beverage categories with the highest store brand indexes are powdered soft drinks, instant coffee, instant iced tea mix, orange juice and instant hot cocoa. Most of these categories are usually purchased by large households with five or more people, so it makes sense that consumers buy them to save money.