Ana Ceppi | The Value of Knowing Your Customer

hat is corporate America missing when it comes to understanding its customers?

That was one of several questions we explored during a recent conversation with Ana Ceppi, Founder of Multicultural Growth Partners, in a Midtown Manhattan office building.

Ceppi is no stranger to HL Media Network. In May 2026, she was among the accomplished business and community leaders recognized during our HL Milestone Series celebration in the Bronx, New York. Her recognition acknowledged her professional accomplishments, contributions to the marketing and communications industry, and influence as a business leader.

Our October conversation provided an opportunity to move beyond those accomplishments and explore the ideas, experiences, and observations shaping her perspective on the American marketplace.

From customer economics and corporate strategy to entrepreneurship, leadership, and meaningful relationships, Ceppi brought decades of professional experience to a discussion about identifying opportunities that businesses may be overlooking.

As our conversation progressed, we eventually arrived at one of our favorite questions: What’s next?

A Career Built on Recognizing Opportunities

For Ceppi, understanding customers is more than a professional specialty. It is part of a family tradition.

Her parents operated an advertising agency in Puerto Rico, introducing her to the industry before she began her own professional journey.

She later came to the United States to attend college, earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.

Her career has included work across journalism, advertising, corporate marketing, public relations, media strategy, and business development.

Along the way, she contributed to major initiatives, including the first American Express Centurion Lounge, Small Business Saturday, the Association of National Advertisers’ first Value of Culture metric, and the first Inclusive Edelman Trust Barometer.

Her accomplishments have earned industry recognition, including a Cannes Grand Prix, five Effie Awards, and selection among Crain’s 2022 Most Powerful Latinos.

Today, as the founder of Multicultural Growth Partners, Ceppi works with organizations seeking to identify business opportunities through a more detailed understanding of their customers.

At the heart of her approach is curiosity.

“Where’s the blind spot? Where’s the thing that I don’t know?”

Those questions, she explained, have guided much of her professional career.

For Ceppi, identifying business opportunities often begins by challenging what an organization believes it already knows.

HL | Business Interviews — Meet Ana Ceppi

Part One: Know Your Customer

In this first installment of our HL | Business Interviews collection, we introduce Ana Ceppi and explore the professional experiences behind her approach to business strategy and customer value.

What Is Corporate America Missing?

During our conversation, we asked Ceppi what corporate America might be overlooking, particularly as businesses discuss the economic influence of multicultural consumers.

Her response focused on three important considerations: understanding the true value of customer segments, recognizing demographic changes, and responding to a marketplace that continues to evolve.

The first challenge, she explained, involves examining customer information beyond broad demographic categories.

Businesses may understand how their customers fit into generational groups, but they do not always recognize which segments within those groups contribute the greatest value.

Ceppi described a recent project involving a food and beverage company that believed its most valuable customer was a millennial mother.

Her analysis suggested that Latino customers represented an important opportunity the company had not fully recognized.

The example demonstrated how assumptions can influence business decisions and potentially result in underinvestment in valuable customer segments.

“Who is your customer?”

It is a simple question, but one Ceppi believes deserves a much more detailed answer.

While national research has helped establish the economic significance of Latino consumers, she believes companies must examine how that influence translates into their individual businesses.

“People tend to aggregate it and they don’t look at it disaggregated.”

For Ceppi, that distinction matters.

A broad understanding of multicultural consumer spending provides important context, but detailed analysis can reveal where companies are missing opportunities and where competitors may already be investing.

The Changing American Marketplace

Ceppi believes the demographic changes taking place throughout the United States require companies to reconsider long-established approaches to marketing and business development.

Younger generations are increasingly multicultural, while purchasing decisions reflect different cultural experiences, family traditions, and economic priorities.

Companies that continue approaching customers as one uniform marketplace may overlook important opportunities.

“You will find growth by leaning into culture and making sure that your products, your services, and your communications have that cultural elasticity.”

The concept of cultural elasticity reflects her belief that businesses must understand customers beyond language and demographics.

It involves recognizing how culture influences purchasing decisions and developing products, services, and communications that connect with those experiences.

For Ceppi, multicultural business development is not simply about representation.

It is about understanding the marketplace and positioning companies to respond to economic opportunities.

The demographic developments she describes are not temporary. They represent long-term changes that will continue influencing customer demand, corporate investment, and business growth.

Her message to business leaders is to recognize these opportunities before competitors do.

Bringing the Conversation to the Financial Table

One of the strongest moments in our conversation came when Ceppi discussed who should be involved in developing multicultural business strategies.

Historically, these discussions have often taken place within corporate marketing departments or employee resource groups.

While both play important roles, Ceppi believes financial leadership should be directly involved.

“I encourage everyone to get a buddy in the financial piece of the organization and really talk about cold money.”

Her point is that customer value must become part of the financial conversation.

When businesses quantify customer spending, potential market share, and missed revenue opportunities, discussions about multicultural consumers move beyond marketing objectives.

They become conversations about investment, business performance, and competitive advantage.

Companies should not view Latino consumers solely through the lens of cultural recognition or communications.

They should understand their contribution to revenue, profitability, and long-term business growth.

This perspective applies not only to major corporations but also to entrepreneurs and business owners seeking to identify customers, expand their market presence, and position their companies for future growth.

The Value of Relationships

Beyond her professional accomplishments, Ceppi spoke thoughtfully about the importance of developing and maintaining meaningful relationships.

Her network includes corporate executives, entrepreneurs, nonprofit leaders, educators, and emerging professionals.

Interestingly, she describes herself as an introvert.

“I’m a strategic connector.”

Rather than developing the largest possible professional network, Ceppi focuses on relationships that create opportunities for meaningful collaboration.

“I have a small network that’s pretty, pretty deep.”

Her approach reflects the importance she places on understanding people’s strengths and identifying opportunities to connect them with others.

That philosophy extends to her commitment to developing future generations of leaders.

Having experienced what it means to be among the first, or one of the few, Latina professionals participating in corporate conversations, she wants younger professionals to recognize the value they bring to those discussions.

She continues visiting schools and colleges, sharing her experiences and encouraging students to understand that their perspectives matter.

“They need to know that their seat is valuable.”

For Ceppi, opening opportunities for the next generation involves more than helping individuals gain access to professional environments.

It requires helping them understand the value of their knowledge, experiences, and contributions.

She believes the growing number of Latino professionals entering business and leadership positions creates opportunities for collective advancement rather than isolated individual accomplishments.

Ana Ceppi | The Value of Knowing Your Customer

Ana Ceppi, Founder of Multicultural Growth Partners, photographed following her interview with HL Media Network in Midtown Manhattan, New York, in October 2026.  Our conversation explored business strategy, customer value, leadership, and opportunities shaping the American marketplace.

Photography by Richard Sandoval | HL Media Network

What’s Next?

Toward the conclusion of our conversation, we asked Ceppi a question that has become a familiar part of our interviews with business and community leaders.

What’s next?

She reflected on a recent gathering where approximately 100 professionals were discussing their aspirations to serve on corporate boards.

While many participants were focused on obtaining a board position, Ceppi offered a different perspective.

“I don’t want to be on a board. I want to be able to influence every board.”

The statement reflects her interest in shaping decisions being made across corporate America.

For Ceppi, the next chapter involves continuing to provide business leaders with facts, research, and perspectives that can influence how organizations understand their customers.

She wants conversations about multicultural consumers to become an integral part of business planning and financial decision-making.

Her ambitions extend beyond corporate strategy.

Reflecting on her family’s history, she spoke about standing on the shoulders of previous generations and wanting to create opportunities for others to advance further.

Her message emphasizes collective progress.

“Don’t travel by yourself, bring your bestie +one, bring your +2, bring your +10.”

The observation captures her belief that professional advancement becomes more meaningful when individuals bring others along.

The 10% That Makes a Difference

As our conversation approached its conclusion, Ceppi offered one final observation about professional growth and innovation.

She described how professionals spend much of their working lives fulfilling the responsibilities expected of them.

Within those responsibilities, however, she believes there is an opportunity to contribute something more.

“That 10% is where you can really shine. Stand up.”

For Ceppi, that additional effort represents an opportunity to introduce new ideas, question assumptions, and demonstrate leadership beyond a person’s defined responsibilities.

It is a perspective shaped by a career that has taken her across numerous disciplines and ultimately into entrepreneurship.

Her experiences offer a reminder that innovation does not always begin with a new position, company, or assignment.

Sometimes it begins with recognizing something others have overlooked.

For entrepreneurs, corporate executives, and business leaders, her message is particularly relevant.

Understanding the changing American marketplace requires curiosity, meaningful relationships, reliable information, and the willingness to challenge established assumptions.

As Ceppi continues her work influencing how businesses understand multicultural consumers, her approach offers a valuable lesson.

The next opportunity for growth may already be there. The challenge is recognizing its value.

I welcome your thoughts, ideas, and suggestions for future stories. Whether it’s a personal experience, an inspiring individual, or an important issue affecting our communities, I’d like to hear from you.

Email me at RDS@HispanicLifestyle.com, connect with @HLTV on Instagram, or follow Richard Sandoval on LinkedIn.

Let’s keep the conversation going.