Bakeries to barber shops: A booming Hispanic population is thriving in New Orleans

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - Tucked away along Bienville St. in Mid-City, the staff at Norma's Bakery keeps up with the demand for conchas, pasteles and other treats throughout the day.

"It's always better for the bread to leave than for us to keep the bread," José Castillo said.

Castillo is the manager of the bakery's New Orleans location, making sure his cooks serve the hearty and traditional breakfasts and lunches the neighborhood is used to.

He also makes sure the cabinets are stocked with enough sweet treats to last the day.

"We show our gratitude by always providing the same service to them. It's a good feeling, it really is," Castillo said.

Castillo and other relatives have helped his mother and the bakery's namesake, Norma Castillo, since the first location opened in Kenner in 2004.

Castillo helped open the Mid-City store in 2011, making sure the family's Honduran recipes and Latin American goods were always available for clients.

And now even his children, like Gabriela Castillo, are picking up aprons and manning cash registers to keep the businesses within the family.

"I've been here since I was a little girl helping out and sweeping the floors after school and stuff. Being a part of this now and being able to help, I feel really proud," Gabriela Castillo said.

At 19 years old, Gabriela also helps the bakery flourish online by managing all social media pages - bringing the third-generation business into the digital age.

"With being the younger generation, I wanted to jump in and take over with that," she said.

Throughout the years, Castillo says more and more Hispanic families and Latin American customers are coming through the door and shopping up and down their aisles.

They say it's their sign that their typical clientele is booming throughout the region.

"There are 146,000, 147,000 just about, Hispanic people in the New Orleans metro area," The Data Center Executive Director Lamar Gardere said.

Gardere and his staff in New Orleans keep track of population trends in Southeast Louisiana, including the Hispanic community .

Gardere says among Orleans, Jefferson St. Tammany, St. Bernard, Plaquemines, St. Charles, St. John and St. James Parishes, the Hispanic community has always been present but either very small or not too visible.

Gardere says in the 1970s and 1980s, immigration to the New Orleans area ramped up with more people from Latin America flocking to the United Fruit Company which was headquartered in downtown New Orleans.

The community would see an even bigger boom in the 21st century after Hurricane Katrina, when skilled workers from Mexico and Latin America, along with Hispanic workers already in the U.S., came to Louisiana to help rebuild after the storm.

The Data Center reports the Hispanic population in the New Orleans metro area was just 4% of the entire population back in 2000.

And according to the most recent data, that number ballooned to 12% in 2023.

"It's one of the only populations actually growing in our metro area," Gardere said.

The Data Center reports most of the population is in Jefferson Parish where roughly 79,805 Hispanics live. A quarter of that population is in Kenner alone, with more than 16,000 calling the city home.

Orleans Parish has around 29,563 Hispanics and St. Bernard Parish has roughly 6,206.

"These numbers make it clear how our metro area is changing, how much more diverse our metro area is becoming and that is not a New Orleans phenomenon, that is not a Jefferson or St. Tammany phenomenon. It's across the board," Gardere said.

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Gardere says a good visual cue of the changing landscape is the amount of Hispanic-owned and operated businesses thriving across the region.

Mayra Pineda, the President/CEO of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Louisiana, has been involved with the chamber for nearly 30 years - leading it to rapid growth.

"I've watched the growth of the organization since I started in this role from 125 members to over 800 statewide," Pineda said.

Pineda says business growth was most dramatic after Katrina when Hispanic store fronts opened, and families started moving to areas wrecked by the storm.

"I think the Hispanic community represents a major force and it's so valuable to keep things moving," She said.

A quick drive down Williams Blvd. in any direction can provide a snapshot of a boom of Hispanic-owned restaurants, shops, lawyers offices, health clinics and La Industria Barbershop, the newest members of the Hispanic chamber of commerce.

"It's so important to have a Latino barber shop here because Latinos have grown so much in this area," co-owner Jario Avila said.

"Being here as a resident of Kenner for the past 15 years, the growth of the Hispanic community has been a huge thing," co-owner Melvin Taj said.

Avila and Taj, like many Latino business owners in the area, worked hard in their craft with the hope of having years of success in the greater New Orleans area.

"I give thanks to God for helping us with our dream. And by God, we will continue to grow and our community in the city will continue to grow," Avila said.

And while La Industria and Norma's Bakery are just snapshots of the hundreds of Hispanic-owned businesses popping up in our area, industry leaders hope more young entrepreneurs invest in the region like they did.

"Just stay consistent. Make the best choices you can make and know where you want to be at. It will all come together," Castillo said.