What African-Americans prefer

If Black History Month is an opportunity for supermarkets to show they appreciate the business of 42 million African-Americans with about $1 trillion in buying power, only some get it right.  

The Jewel-Osco division of Supervalu is one example. During February, it honors its African-American vendors, increases the in-store sampling of their products, and makes grants to community organizations.  

More important, this Chicago leader is committed to serving this market and tailors assortments to shoppers in its stores year-round. “We’re only as strong as the communities we operate in,” Melissa Pursley, the chain’s director of marketing, told Today’s Chicago Woman.

If African-Americans raise their buying power to $1.2 trillion by 2014, as Packaged Facts research suggests, and if African-Americans remain optimistic about their economic prospects with President Obama in office and spend accordingly, more retailers will likely court these consumers.

Their efforts will be better targeted if they “recognize and understand the full diversity of the Black Population,” says Nielsen and the National Newspaper Publishers Association in The State of the African-American Consumer, a report they issued recently as the first of three annual installments.  Highlights show:

DEMOGRAPHICS
•    African-Americans account for 13.6% of the U.S. population now, and that will rise to 14.2% by 2025. This group has a 30% higher growth rate than the U.S. overall, and is relatively young – nearly half (47%) are under the age of 35.
•    The number of African-American households earning $75,000 or more rose 63.9% between 2000 and 2009. This growth rate exceeds that of the overall population by 11.7%.
•    On the rise: education, as well as the number of never-marrieds and the average age of men and women entering their first marriage.  Therefore, the report suggests, marketers should key to more single-adult and non-married households.
•    Slowing down:  the birth rate.

WHAT AFRICAN-AMERICANS BUY
•    African-American women see themselves as the primary decision makers for most kinds of purchases, including health/beauty (77%), household cleaning (68%), food (62%), prescriptions and over-the-counter remedies (55%), and beverages (53%).
•    African-Americans shop more often than all other groups, but spend less money per trip and overall. They’re inclined to make quicker and smaller purchases based on short-term needs. They’re less deal-prone and less eager to stock up. In supermarkets, for instance, they spend $34.10 per trip versus $41.80 spent by non-African-Americans.
•    They shop at dollar stores, convenience/gas stores and drug stores more than non-African-Americans. Specifically, they make 56.4 annual trips per household to supermarkets versus 58.8 for non-African-Americans. Other figures are:  dollar stores, 20.7 versus 11.4; convenience/gas stores, 17.4 versus 12.7; drug stores, 15.6 versus 13.9.
•    They index higher than non-African-American households on their purchases of: frozen meat, poultry and seafood (168); dried vegetables and grains (161); seasonings and spices (156); refrigerated juices and drinks (155); and shelf-stable juices and drinks (155), to name a few.
•    They index higher within nonfoods too.  For example:  ethnic HBC (954); feminine hygiene (188); greeting cards and party needs (177); fresheners and deodorizers (176); personal soap and bath (160), and women’s fragrances (152).