On average, over 100,000 Mexico-residing individuals cross the border legally into San Diego County each day in December - many as consumers for the simple reason of buying Holiday gifts. Crossborder Group's at-border surveys focused on retail holiday purchasing habits are the focus of this quick Crossborder Informa brief.

1. CrossborderINFORMA
Research :: Analysis :: Insights
A review of recent business, industry & policy research
by CrossborderBusiness.com, a division of Crossborder Group
January 2011
Crossborder Christmas Shoppers Leave the Green in San Diego Stores
It’s a well known (but under-researched) fact that crossborder visitors from Mexico leave a significant economic
impact on U.S. communities from daily shopping visits. Each winter, seasonal Christmas Holiday shoppers from
Mexico also add an extra “gift” to stores (and local economies) along the U.S.-Mexico border – something that
Crossborder Group has periodically measured in the San Diego-Tijuana border region since 2003.
0% 20% 40% 60%
On an average December day near Christmas, without shouting, crying or
pouting (except when sent to secondary-inspection), nearly 100,000
0 5.7%
Mexico residents cross (legally) through San Diego-Tijuana’s Ports of Entry
(POEs) at San Ysidro and Otay Mesa. Most of them aren’t thinking about 1-2 Times 51.6%
sugarplums (whatever those are); rather, they’re thinking about Holiday
Shopping… 3-4 Times 30.9%
In fact, based on Crossborder Group’s Winter Quarterly surveys at San 5-6 Times 6.0%
Ysidro and Otay Mesa (in mid/late-December, applied randomly to car
and pedestrian travelers), over 94% of Mexico-residing border crossers 7-8 Times 3.9%
stated that they crossed at least once per month to go shopping in San
9-10 Times 1.0%
Diego County. As seen at right, in fact, over 42% crossed 3 or more times
each month to shop. 10 or More 0.8%
Monthly Shopping
Trips by Crossborder
Visitors to San Diego
In December 2010, estimated average daily expenditures reported by Don’t Know 0.1%
(Dec. 2010, n=795)
Mexico visitors into San Diego County was US$181 per trip. More
impressive was the US$536 average household expenditure given when Ave. Household Holiday Gift
Expenditures by Baja Residents
asked “Approximately how much will you and those in your household into San Diego County Stores
spend on holiday gifts in San Diego during the Christmas Season?” (December 2003-2010)
What might that mean to San Diego’s economy? Well… 2010
(Dec) $536
• 92% of Mexico-residing border crossers at the San Diego-Tijuana
POEs come from the Tijuana Metro Region (consisting of Tijuana, 2007
Rosarito, and Tecate); (Dec) $605
• 2010 census data from Mexico estimates approximately 475,000
2005
households in the Tijuana Metro Region; and (Dec)
$554
• Previous in-Mexico surveys by Crossborder Group in Tijuana found
that 30-55% of households (depending on location) reported at 2003
$562
(Dec)
least one family member with a border crossing card or visa to
enter the United States. $- $100 $200 $300 $400 $500 $600 $700
Baja’s regalo navideño to San Diego: conservatively, an estimated US$76.4 to US$101.8 million in direct
expenditures for crossborder Christmas shopping by Tijuana Metro Region households in San Diego County
during 2010. Now that’s a nice gift for the local economy.
Got questions about border crossers? Add them to Crossborder Group’s 2011 At-Border Quarterly Surveys along the
California-Mexico border (Spring Omnibus scheduled for March/April, and Summer Omnibus scheduled for June/July). For
your Mexico and US-Mexico needs, contact the professionals of Crossborder Group at Answers@CrossborderBusiness.com
to help you find answers, insights and market solutions.
Crossborder Research :: Strategies :: Market Entry Solutions :: 1.888.4XBORDER :: Answers@CrossborderBusiness.com
Crossborder Group Inc.:
Crossborder NS, S de RL de CV: Paseo de los Heroes 10289, Primer Piso 107-A, Zona Rio, Tijuana, Baja California 22010 MEXICO