Cultural diversity is in the cards for consumers: vendors, retailers micro-marketing greeting cards mix

Discount Store News, Sept 5, 1994 by Ela Schwartz

Other retailers are a little less enthused about ethnic greeting cards. Matt Hunnell, vice president of merchandising, Consolidated Stores, said ethnic cards are not separated from the mix except for special occasions, such as Kwanzaa.

"Sometimes I think serving ethnic customers is more a matter of adjusting the mix," he said. "For example, if Mother's Day is important to certain ethnic groups, the vendor will adjust the mix to include more Mother's Day cards."

The Southern retailer said stores will carry 4 ft. to 8 ft. of African-American and Hispanic cards. "It's only doing fairly well," he commented. "I think these consumers have gotten used to mainstream cards. While some are shifting over, others are offended. So we don't see ethnic cards as a growth area for us."