The ethnic markets within the U.S. are growing twice as fast as those of the overall population, with the Eastern European segment representing about 25 million people in the US.  Ethnic consumers rely heavily on word-of-mouth advertising; and in most cases, word-of-mouth advertising significantly exceeds traditional and/or online marketing efforts.  They place high value on the family environment, education, and the preservation of their cultural heritage through membership in ethnic organizations, providing a unique market niche to marketers. 

Marketers who reach out to these ethnic consumers with cross-cultural advertising generate a far greater response than those who only target mainstream media.  About 56% of the ethnic population nationwide responds to print advertisement only when they see it in their own media.  Moreover, advertising in ethnic media is on average 7 times less expensive than in general mainstream media.

Below you will find demographic information on specific ethnic markets.  We would like to share this knowledge with you, and invite you to explore the perpetually expanding ethnic markets within the US.  We promise you will never look back.

individual market information :

albanian AMERICANS

The US population of Albanian heritage is estimated at 113,661.

Areas of major concentration: NY (32,428), NJ (7,336), MI (15,343), IL(6,424).

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BULGARIAN AMERICANS

People of Bulgarian heritage are estimated at 55,489 in the US.

Major areas of concentration: CA (7,845), IL (6,000), NY (5,937),
FL (3,310), Oh (2,937).

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GREEK AMERICANS

Basic characteristics
Fairly well assimilated
Slowed immigration: about 5% per year
Predominantly fluent in English
Solid market
Highly educated
Strong buying power
Extremely loyal
Shrewd business people

The 2000 US Census reported 1,153,307 persons of Greek ancestry were living in the United States.

US Geographic Distribution: top concentrations
1. New York - 159,763
2. California - 125,284
3. Illinois - 95,064
4. Massachusetts - 78,172
5. Florida - 76,908

Education/Professional Status/Buying Power
More than 50% hold at least a bachelor degree.
Approximately 70% hold managerial, technical, sales or other white collar positions.
30% work in blue collar fields.
Average family income: over $55,000.
Estimated collective buying power: over $2 billion.

Language and Culture Statistics
Approximately 75% of Americans identify themselves as of purely Greek descent.

22.21% 1st generation: On average, most are fluent in Greek.
38.92% 2nd generation: On average, English is preferred, though Greek language skills exist, some fluency.
27.77% 3rd generation: On average, language skills meager to nonexistent.
11.10% 4th generation: On average, language skills meager to nonexistent.

Persons in 3rd and 4th generation tend to have less affiliation or participation in the Greek community than those of 1st or 2nd generation.

Greek Americans highly identify with the Greek Orthodox Church, and culture affiliation almost always equals religious affiliation.

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HUNGARIAN AMERICANS

Hungarian population estimated at 15,000-20,000.

Reside mostly in NY, OH, FL, IL (Chicago primarily).

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POLISH AMERICANS

The Polish-American population is estimated at approximately 10 million people.

Chicago is considered the second largest “Polish city in the world after Warsaw.

According to University Chicago research, the average income for a Polish family exceeds the US average income by 15%. Mean HH income is $63,456.

The median age of Polish people is 10 years younger then the US average.

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ROMANIAN AMERICAN

The Romanian speaking population is estimated at approximately 1,200,000 (1 mln) people, living in US.

The major areas of concentration are NY, CA, FL, IL.

The top four cities of residence are New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago and Detroit.

Romanian-Americans have a median annual HH income of $37,500.

62% are married, with the average number of children 1.4.

35.6% of Romanian-Americans hold a bachelor’s degree or higher.

98% Christians of various denominations such as: Adventists, Baptist, Christian evangelists, eastern orthodox, Greek Catholics and Pentecostals.

Romanian-Americans have distinguished themselves for having been able to comprehend and learn the English language quickly.

Eagerness and perseverance has contributed to their recognition as very hard workers and very successful people.

High buying power.

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RUSSIAN AMERICANS

There are more than 4 million Russian-speakers living in the US.

Russian-Americans have the highest median household and family income among all ancestry groups; over 50% of Russian-Americans have a median annual HH income of $50,500.

10 out of every 100 consumer dollars spent in the NY metro area are spent by Russian-speaking consumers.

Approximately 35% of Russian speaking population in IL holds stocks, bonds or other investment instruments.

The Russian ethnic group became the second largest ethnic market representing 10.3% or 2.9 million of the foreign-born American population, topped only by the Mexicans, who claim 28% or 7.8 million foreign-born Americans.

Russian immigrants are the most educated immigrant group in U.S. immigration history.

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SERBIAN AMERICANS


Chicago has between 200,000 and 250,000 Serbians.

Very dispersed geographically.

Diverse and generally belong to three main groups:

The newly arrived: young ages 18-25 who came to the States to either pursue studies or look for jobs.

The older generation: those who have immigrated to the States a few decades ago most of them escaping from communism.

The American-born Serbs: all ages and all occupations.

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UKRAINIAN AMERICAN

The total number of Ukrainians in the United States, in 2000, was estimated at 893,055 by the census.

As the number of Ukrainians was 740,803 in 1990, there was an increase of 152,252 (or 20.6 percent) in the last decade, suggesting a continued increase in immigration.

The eight states with the largest numbers of Ukrainians have remained the same: New York, Pennsylvania, California, New Jersey, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan and Florida. The first five states host more than half of all Ukrainians in the United States.

Sources: 2000, 1990 and 1980 US Census data; Euroamericans.net; Orthodox Christian Laity Congress