St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1962-09-14


illiteracy is high, Maurice White
the press has less impact.
Primarily, though, they feel such
special selling works only in day
to-day products. For costlier
items, the expense is out of pro-
portion to the return. Pepsi's Rus
sell feels, however, that the Ne
gro's need for big-ticket items, his
propensity to stretch his dollar to
get the best, may offset this lin
itation.
The media retaliate with a good
case for themselves. The Negro
needs a voice Of his own. From the
marketing side, an ad in the Negro
press tells him quickly what he
wants to know: We invite you, we
want you.
Casual approach. Most potent,
but rarely used, appeal is the Gas
ual" approach through general
media. Chicago's Commonwealth
Edison Co., rang the bell recently
when it included a Negro family
in a series Of ads featuring famil-
les that use a lot of electricity.
Says one Negro: THE wonderful
thing about the ad was that it
didn't say, This is a good Negro
customer but simply, This is a
good customer"
v. In transition
AS the Negro doggedly climbs
the economic and social ladder,
some Of the old shibboleths are
fading. The big car may still be
the status symbol Of the lower
income groups, but the more pros
porous are shifting their sights.
II have four kids so I have a
station wagon. What else would
have?" asks one Negro reason
ably.
A nice home, education, travel
these are the new targets for
those who can afford them. And
in these areas the market is wide
open, and unsatisfied Some con-
Germs are beginning to fill the gap.
New travel market. The travel
market is just opening up. Hilton
G. Hill, Inc, New York travel
agent, speciaizes in package
trips to the West Indies. Hill finds
eager takers among even the mass
income groups - the telephone
company employee, maybe, who
can save up for q weeks splurge
at $500 to $500. An Atlanta travel
agency sponsors Negro sorority
trips to Africa and Europe. Travel
Is picking up in San Francisco,
with Hawaii and Mexico favored
goals.
Agents feel that the transporta-
ton companies haven't come close
to capitalizing on this demand.
It's true that KIM this year spon-
sored Peter Pan" tours to Eur
|ope. Western Air Lines, Inc, has
started to promote Negro tours.
Those few Negroes who can af-
ford it prefer overseas vacations.
They don't want a sit-in hon-
day." Hill says. But Greyhound
Corp, recognizing Negroes fam
iliarity and liking for inexpensive
bus travel, is making a pitch for
chartered bus trips in this coun-
try.
Miami Is going to town. Four
top-notch motel-hotels there are
pursuing the Negro trade. One Of
them, Hampton House, spent
$25, 900 this year in promotion. 1t
shows movies Of its glamorous fac
ilities to groups in other cities, is
offering package trips this sum-
mer, and reports business is more
than double last years,
Housing demand. Housing is
still an aching void, but some are
moving to fill 1t. An Atlanta
apartment builder says: We're
approximately 5000 unit starts be-
hind the demand" Urban renewal
programs in that city - and in
Detroit - are helping. In Hous-
ton, roughly half the city's Ne
groes own their own homes. Ne
groes are taking over some Of the
fine older homes in st. Louis as
the whites take to the suburbs.
Dunbar Development Corp. and its
affiliate, Sandale Development
Corp, are starting ambitious pro-
jects to sell second" homes with
country club facilities in the New
York Philadelphia area.
Negroes find the suburbs stin
largely locked to them. 1t is down.
town where the transition shows
most clearly. Many merchants"
an observer notes, realize that
Negroes are sustaining downtown