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While most Christians wrapped up their holiday season days ago, for some Latino Christians around the world, Jan. 6, known as Three Kings Day, is one more day to celebrate. For retailers, it also means two more weeks of holiday shopping.

With the rapidly rising U.S. Latino population topping more than 44.3 million people (about 14 percent of the population) and a spending power predicted to stand at $1.2 trillion by 2011, retailers are paying more attention to culturally significant holidays such as Three Kings Day. Get more facts on this explosive market.

Wal-Mart, No. 41 on The DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity^® list, began promoting the holiday last year and is expanding its promotions this year. "It makes all the business sense in the world if you can extend the selling season," said Alex Lopez Negrete, CEO of Lopez Negrete Communications. His company worked with Wal-Mart on its Three Kings campaign. "It tells your customers that you know their traditions," he told USA Today.  

Three Kings Day also is referred to as Feast of Epiphany. In many Spanish-speaking countries, it is equivalent to Christmas. The day is usually celebrated with a feast, songs and gifts. For Latinos in America, the tradition has become a time to use creative and unconventional methods to celebrate. In some of Los Angeles' immigrant neighborhoods, it is tradition to observe the feast day with elaborate homemade nativity scenes--called nacimientos--on display in their front lawns, reports National Public Radio.

Learn more about religion in the workplace in this provocative roundtable from the Nov./Dec. 2007 issue of DiversityInc magazine.

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