St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1955-03-04

SIedsiiiS roie IL pays III the al
fairs of business and industry.
One of the major misconcep-
tons held by most is that the
Negro Market" is low priced.
Surveys have shown that this IL
not so. Actually. when the ma
jority of Negroes buy, they buy
very high quality whether it is
clothes, automobiles, food, houses
or furniture. They also purchase
large quantities of high-priced
staples and Injuries.
Homes, Clothes, and Food
Ebony, the Life-styled national
Negro magazine, points out that
the striving for recognition and
the want for style and quality re-
suits in Negroes scrimping on
many things to be able to buy
tthose) things which are most
evident to their fellow men, the
things by which people judge
ones status in the world of to-
day"
Negroes are basically interest
ed in homes, clothes and food,
These are the things also basic to
business and industry. The &C.
onomic impact is emphasized by
the fact that the number of Ne
groes in the country is greater
than the population Of Connect
cut, Massachusetts,, New Jersey
and Wisconsin combined. Their
numbers exceed the total popula-
ton of Canada. Their purchasing
power exceeds in value the total
volume of goods exported annual
ly by this country.
Urban Concentration
In the past decade the income
Of the average Negro family has
more than quadrupied. There has
been a sharp increase in those en-
gagged in professional, semi-pro-
fessional, and managerial occu-
pations. Families have one to
four supplementary incomes.
The Negro market is heavily
concentrated I'm urban areas
which means II Is market easy
to reach. Census figures show
that so per cent Of the Negro
population Is located In key
cities. And to this can be added
that during the last Is years,
the Negro has made more pro =
gress than In all the 80 years
since emancipation.
There are some interesting
highlights developing over what is
known as the Negro market.
Businesses of all kinds and in
dustries of every type are seek.
ing new ways to tap" 1t. Yet not
many Negroes like the term. Ne.
gro market. There are many rea.
sons.
Basically the Negro does not
want to be set apart from al
other Americans. They want to
become an accepted part of the
whole economy. While in a broad
sense they constitute a nation
within a nation and cities within
cities with their own race ma.
tionalisms" and loyalties, they are
seen differing little from the units
of Italo-Americans, Irish-Ameri'
cans or Jewish-Americans.
What the advertising world il
finding out Is that to sell to the
Negro market II Is vital to re-
member that II Is q distinct yet
well-integrated part Of the
American scene. There are well
over 1000, 900 Negroes in New
York City alone. What this
means to business can be spell
ed out with just one item
Mean Income Rises
AS long ago as 1910. 90 pei
cent of New York's Negro fami'
lies owned radio sets. During the
last decade this figure has in
creased to a point close 10 satura'
ton. This means a substantial
support to New York's radio bust
ness interests.
| How 10 reach the market
Tide magazine in recent study
Of the Negro market stated: TN.
smart advertiser. regardless Of
the medium. does not backslap
.aik down or up TO his potentia
customers. Rather. the successful
Negro advertiser has found whai
Negro advertising representative.
have been trying to tell them fol
for years: that the MARKET Il
there-rich and willing: II want
only 10 know what companies
want 10 trade with IL and ar
making concerted efforts to d
just that"
What some Of these thing
mean IL that ss the Negro econo
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