Latinos and Beauty As We Age: A Cultural Reflection

Though Latinos value beauty and personal grooming more highly than the general population, and they spend significantly more on beauty and personal grooming products, most Latinos ages 50 and older feel that the industry treats them like an afterthought, according to a recent AARP survey. In fact, most would grade the beauty and personal grooming industry with a "C" or worse, the survey found.

Beauty and personal grooming are highly important to 9 out of 10 Latinos regardless of age, and they spend more time and money on their beauty routine than the average American. Latinos ages 50 and older spend an average of $46 per month on beauty and personal grooming products, compared to a significantly lower $25 for the general population. They typically apply six beauty products and spend nearly 45 minutes daily on their beauty regimen, significantly higher than the average consumer over age 50.

Despite their commitment to looking and feeling good, however, most Latinos 50 and older (69%) felt that industry marketing all but ignores people their age. More than 6 in 10 Latinos over age 50 would grade the industry with a “C” or worse, and nearly 4 in 10 do not feel the beauty industry creates products with people their age in mind. Women over age 40 would particularly like more facial skincare and hair care products formulated especially for menopausal and premenopausal needs, the survey found.

Younger Latinos also support age diversity in the beauty and personal grooming category. Among Latinos of all ages, 80% said they would be more likely to use a brand that featured a range of ages in its advertising.

When asked what defines personal beauty, Latinos across all age groups most often cited internal characteristics: personality (39%); morals, character, values (38%); and kindness (37%). Those were followed by external characteristics such as physical appearance (24%), personal image (19%), and physical health (17%). Though they cited internal characteristics most often, Latinos said they want to look good on the outside so they stand out, look successful, and appeal to others on social media. These external motivations are much more prevalent for Latinos compared to adults in general, especially among people age 50 and older.

One-third of respondents credited their mothers as their first influencer of beauty — well ahead of friends, celebrities, or other adults. However, beauty influence doesn’t stop there for Hispanics. Regardless of age, about 6 in 10 said it is fun keeping up with what’s current or “cool,” and they always keep up with trends. A similar percentage, including 57% of Latinos ages 50 and older, said social media has helped them find new beauty routines.

Data for this survey were collected by Hotspex Inc. through an online survey via Dynata Panel targeting panelists ages 18 and older of Spanish, Hispanic, or Latino background living in the United States and supplemented with offline intercepts among unacculturated Hispanics/Latinos in five markets (Los Angeles, New York, Miami, Houston and Chicago). Interviews were conducted from July 2 to July 16 in English and Spanish among 686 adults. Data were weighted by age, gender, region, and country of origin to be representative of the Hispanic/Latino population of the United States.

For more information, please contact Angela Houghton at ahoughton@aarp.org. For media inquiries, contact media@aarp.org.