(and what it means if you’re doing business with Latin America)
The news story about a birthday party invitation for a 15th year-old girl called Rubi going viral in Mexico (thanks @katywatson @adowniebrazil for sharing) made me laugh today. You have to love Latin American’s sense of humour.
But why would Mr Ibarra and his wife celebrate their daughter’s 15th birthday in such a lavish way and why does it matter to you, far away in the UK, trying to do business with Latin America?
Well, 15th birthday parties are a big (very big) deal for Latin Americans, not just Mexicans. It’s kind of a coming of age party, similar to a “debutante ball” in the UK (Wikipedia can shed some light on this). You can expect a party pretty similar to a wedding, and usually bigger than most UK weddings I’ve ever been to. Our parties can involve dozens or hundreds of people (family, friends, neighbours, parents’ colleagues and friends, etc), a wedding-like dress, music bands, DJs, and so much more. The fiesta goes on for hours and hours, and it’s not unusual for them to start at 9-10pm and finish at breakfast. Amazing.
I won’t go into the anthropological, social or historical explanations of why we have celebrated these parties in the past or continue to celebrate then in 2016. Even if they have changed over time and vary across countries, 15th birthday parties are a here to stay, at least for a long time…
So why am I telling you all this, apart from warning you not to publicise your birthday invitation and risk the thousands of visitors that Mr Ibarra and his wife might end up receiving…
1- it’s important when you do business overseas to know about these little idiosyncrasies, it shows cultural awareness/openness and they’re great ice-breakers (a bit like explaining Boxing Day)
2- you might find that 15th birthday parties are rather interesting business for you – after all, a lot of money is spent on products and services that UK companies can provide
3- if your business contact (distributor, client, partner, etc) in Latin America mentions their daughter’s (or god-daughter’s or niece’s or grand-daughter’s, you get it) 15th birthday party:
– you’ll understand better now why they won’t be available for a certain number of days or on particular dates, it’s not an ordinary event
– remember it’s the equivalent in terms of time, money and stress as a daughter’s wedding, so if they say they aren’t going on holiday because they are paying for the party, you’ll understand, give some support!
– make a fuss over it, they’ll appreciate it, and remember to send your best wishes to the girl and their family (an email will do unless your relationship is personal)
If you haven’t read it yet, enjoy the BBC article, and let me wish Rubi, Mr Ibarra and their family an amazing birthday! ¡Felicidades, Rubi!
PS If you’re wondering, I didn’t celebrate my 15th birthday party like Rubi, because in Uruguay it’s customary for your parents to give you the choice of a party or a trip (we’re a bit more liberal than in Mexico, you see). Being me, I chose the trip and spent my 23 first-ever days in Europe. Little did I know then that when I returned, 5 years later, I would actually stay 13 years in that continent!
