St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1954-06-25

LIB SiOS"cS VI varying ue-
,'grees, ranging from luxury vend-
ers 10 safety-pin statesmen, are
casting penetrating, calculating
and greedy glances in the direc-
ton Of your folks" hip pockets
and change purses. Advertising
specialists and market analysts
are turning cocktail glasses inside
out and wearing calculating ma
chimes completely out, figuring
out ways and means Of guiding
their clients to the quickest and
widest paths to "Sambos slats'
("slats' means dollars to you,
Mac).
THE PSYCHOLOGY Of the Ne
gro buyer is being studied with a
fine tooth comb. Bright young,
eager-beavers of the cullud per-
suasion who have a way with
their folks" in looks and tongue,
are being gathered up like mar
bles by an increasing number of
consumer-goods sellers who are
intent on loading their larders
with presidential portraits" gar
nered from Gods chillun's pay en-
velopes. The great day of the
Negro salesman, who can profit
ably interpret" his folks to the
white producers, is now at hand.
All he has to do is have an effec-
tive approach" just know
the facts about cullud folks eatin'
habits.
Also Of great Significance Is
the approach" which a lot Of
business firms which are with
business firms are using with
or without the help OF Negro
market spoilers" and PRO
curers." Hying back to the
use Of the heather nominations
or darkest Africa's voodoo rites,
the modern American business
man has coined a magic formula
of words which read mo down
payment and months and
months TO pay" or Easy terms
TO fit your pocketbook." Those
are the power-laden words
which rub into miraculous ac-
ton. the Aiaddin's lamp called
the relatively untapped Negro
market"
The result is an upsurge among
the black, brown and beige de-
scendants OF penniless freedmen,
of a sustained spending spree, the
end of which can only be night
marishly envisionend.
CULLUD FOLKS buying in the
past ten years or more might be
divided as follows into: spree
spending, noveau rich spending,
exhibitionistic Cshow-ouD spend
ing and panic spending.
Now take spree spending"
it's too much with Gods
chillun. Sam used to blow his top
by 'givin' the dollah to his baby
and THROWN the dime away"
mostly ON Saturday nights. Now
he's giving the dollar To his
church and the five-spot to his
chic. after making the down
payment on his Cadillac. IL used
To be the two-bit gambler who
waited In the alley for when he
left the pay window To en-
gage him In game of dancing
dominoes. But now it's the
man" from the furniture store
with the instailment dun In his
hand who l. waiting at the front
door.
Unaccustomed as he is 10 hear
ing money talk. being new in the
mastery of such language, Sam is
offering up his pennies before they
can say a mumbling word. The no
down payment or low down pay
ment' magic has shown him the
way to marry off his daughters
ldollsrs) before they are old en-
ough TO fry.
IN "SHOW-oUT' spending the
Negro Is becoming a synonym for
eNhibitionism. Many OF Gods chill
lun feel that a Cadillac guarantees
more rights than the Constitution,
Too many are willing to take a
chance on buyin' a dimes worth
OF humminghird's tongue, on
weekly installmcnts. Flooding
flocks are more willing to wake
up dead broke in nylon night
gowns that TO go 10 bed we'll
heeled and warm in flowing fan
nels,
Then there's the variety
which i spending like mad now.
in the obvious and admitted
fear that the gravy train viii
soon pass by. Lurid advertise
meuts panic 'cm and leave them
with rumniage sale complex.
grabbing like mad for whatever
they can lay a hand on. The
I panic's on.
THE BIG NOISE
| And all that's to say is this:
somewhere along the line OF the
new and increasing Negro mar
ket recognition in which sam is
basking. there's going TO have 10
come an awakening Somebody's
i going 10 have 10 pass the word