Sean Progressive Grocers

Supermarket operators should live up to our publication's target audience by leveraging the close connections between Hispanics and cutting-edge technology.

The speed at which the marketplace is changing is staggering. It's tough to keep up with the accelerating pace of change.

Shifting demographics, innovation, economic trends and mounting competition make it tough to stay ahead of the game.

I recently drove past the last Blockbuster in my area. The store sported a large yellow banner calling out that it was going out of business. Even redbox, the Blue Box slayer, is under threat from high-speed streaming alternatives. Progress has a simple message: Be progressive. Business as usual can be costly.

Some call progress an evolution, but it's more akin to a revolution. Here's just a sample of the revolutionary companies and brands that sooner or later may have a direct impact on the grocery business. See if you recognize some of the companies mentioned on the latest issue of Fast Company's list of the World's 50 Most Innovative Companies: Flipboard, Zumobi, Instapaper, Appcelerator, Zagg, Tiffen, Hipstamatic, Kony, Shazam and Square. They're not really household names, but neither was Twitter 24 months ago.

It was amazing how many of these companies based their innovation on iPhone and iPad applications. Digital technology and progress are giant killers.

We're in a storm of change, and our paradigm has to be altered, or we risk missing the cultural shifts and how they impact purchasing behavior. Change and keeping pace are at the crux of sustaining a viable business. Ask yourself, “Am I willing to change?”

Latino Ubiquity

What does being progressive have to do with multicultural marketing and merchandising? Nothing if you're not keeping up with the releases of the 2010 census. Everything if you're curious about the impact of ethnic growth on your bottom line.

Ethnic markets still represent one of the quickest paths to cash for grocers that are still on the sidelines. Technology sounds sexy but requires investing, development and testing.

The census will confirm yet again that ethnic growth continues to sweep across America. Ethnics accounted for 89 percent of population growth in Texas during the past 10 years. It's important to understand the minority mindset and their fascination with technology, especially mobile platforms, and their proclivity for quick adoption. Sixty-five percent of U.S.-born Hispanics between the ages of 16 and 25 say they text their friends daily, according to a study conducted by the Pew Hispanic Center. Moreover, an article in Advertising Age Global, “U.S. Hispanics Lead in Technology Purchases,” confirmed the Latino appetite for digital products.

Don't get lulled into thinking of Hispanics as poor and disenfranchised. Think of them rather as leading consumers in mobile technology and social media. Hispanics proved their ascendancy throughout America as more than 20 states released 2010 census results and the media described the population growth as explosive.

While your company is scrambling to release its first Twitter campaign or a revamped Facebook page, consider for a moment the role minorities and minority majority markets like Miami, Los Angeles, the New York metropolitan area and Houston play in your overall store footprint and in your company's digital and social media strategy. The progressive grocer will assure that future plans are inclusive from the ground level up. Avoid the trap of being forced into the “either this or that” dilemma.

It's unlikely that anyone reading Progressive Grocer would say, “I don't want to be progressive.” On the contrary, most, if not all, executives would want to be considered forward-thinking and open to new ideas. But what we want and what is are two different things. It takes exertion, faith, determination and a firm commitment to accept risk with its accompanying rewards to be progressive grocers. Be determined. Be firm. Be forward-thinking. Be progressive grocers.

Armando L. Martín is the co-founder of XL Edge and a managing partner of the XL Alliance, a network of companies dedicated to helping business executives elevate their culture and maximize their profits. He will serve as emcee at the 2011 Hispanic Retail 360 Summit at Torrey Pines in San Diego, Aug. 10-12. For more information, visit www.xledge.com.