By Andrea Alegria
Descuento Libre, a website offering coupons and daily deals specifically to Latinos, is growing rapidly, finding opportunity in an underexploited niche.
“The coupon and deal space is evolving extremely quickly, and we believe the Hispanic niche is the largest untapped opportunity in the space,” said Boris Portman, Founder and CEO of Descuento Libre, Inc.
Initially launched in the Austin, Chicago, and Mexico City markets in October of last year, Descuento Libre has since expanded to 21 additional U.S. cities and 53 additional cities in Mexico.
Offering deals in eating, shopping, recreational activities, and social events, the site has been growing in popularity catering primarily to Latinas – particularly young internet-savvy mothers.
The company is also building momentum through consolidation and strategic partnering.
Descuento Libre recently announced its acquisition of Groupacho.com, a Los Angeles-based daily deals website focused on the Hispanic market, which had been running local deals in L.A. with highly popular spots such as La Fonda Lounge, El Cid Restaurant, Chivas Soccer, and the Conga Room.
Groupacho.com advertised on Latino 96.3 FM with endorsements form Raq-c, a well-known female DJ popular with young Latinas.
“In a few short months, Groupacho built the largest Hispanic deal site presence in L.A., which has the biggest Hispanic market in the U.S.,” Portman said after the acquisition was announced Oct. 25.
“Descuento Libre is happy to take that momentum as part of its national [and international] growth,” said Portman.
Groupacho co-founders David Barr and Chris Carrillo said they believe the business they built will be in good hands with Descuento Libre.
“They [Descuento Libre] have fantastic brand recognition, and their site offers a wonderful user experience,” Barr said in a statement. “The upside in the online Hispanic space is far greater than any of the other demographic verticals in the market.”
Opportunity in Hispanic Segment
While hundreds of mass-market deal sites have sprouted since the popular site Groupon launched nearly three years ago, few cater to Latinos.
Hispanics only account for about three percent of Groupon’s visitors, according to quantcast.com, a company that measures website audience, which indicates the significant market opportunity within the Latino niche, according to Portman.
Descuento Libre was the first US Hispanic deal site when it launched, and is the only Hispanic focused deal site with national presence today.
“The market opportunity is quite significant for this underserved fastest growth minority in the US that happens to have a spending power of about $1Trillion,” Portman said.
The website’s growth will continue to be driven by the appeal of coupons and sales, especially during a difficult economy, and by the rapidly increasing use of mobile and social media among Hispanics, which has accelerated the use of “digital coupons”.
Additionally, Portman said the company will continue to form strategic partnerships with major Hispanic media and brands, and will continue to expand its mobile platform.