Changing Demographics

Minority-based Manufacturing

Gwen Sargeant

Summary by Nancy Conner

Gwen Sargeant spoke about minority-based manufacturing. She is currently a production assistant and technical director at Woodlake and also part of F.A.I.T.H (Fashion and Art In The House). She worked her way through a variety of fashion designing jobs in New York City for many different types of companies. She has also gained a lot of experience from traveling abroad, mainly in India.

Making clothing for minorities became an issue about 4-5 years ago. The demographics were changing in favor of minorities and department stores wanted a piece of the action. The problem was that no one knew how to reach this consumer. This created a strong awareness of each group. The average age of African Americans is also considerably less than Caucasian Americans. Today there are 31.4 million African-American citizens in the U.S. It is the largest ethnic group, making up 12.5% of the U.S. population. Approximately 62.2% live in the 50 largest metropolitan areas. Fifty-three percent live in the south and 19% live in the Midwest. Their buying power is $294 billion annually. African-Americans have also experienced a growth boom in college attendance.

Interest in African American heritage is blossoming. This is evident in Black History Month and Kwaanza, which is celebrated by 11million African Americans yearly. African Americans are more likely to shop in their leisure time than Caucasians. They pay attention to advertising, are not loyal to stores, and are interested in quality brands. The youth are also conscious of  name brands. Women are encouraged to buy by price and selection. These statistics help to define the customer and how they shop.

Wal-Mart and Sears are stores that have been going after the African American Market. They have done so with their already fair prices, and by bringing in products geared toward African Americans. They did this by working with minority manufacturers, which there aren’t many of, and working with design teams that make up ethnic designs. Large sizes are important to this market, especially in juniors. Color combinations and African patterns and symbols have been important factors in purchasing decisions in recent years. Recently kente cloth has been popular. The design teams sell their designs to the stores. Gwen worked on the design team F.A.I.T.H. an ethnic design team, creating and selling clothing designs to major retailers nationwide, like Sears and Wal-Mart.

Styles, as with any ethnic group, come and go. It is hard to predict what will be the next trend. Companies have to continue to get to know this consumer and what they want. Companies have to continuously research and work with African Americans to reach this goal. African Americans pay attention to advertising and are influenced by price and assortment, so ideas and designs have to stay fresh and reasonably priced. The market potential in this group outstanding. They have buying power, enjoy shopping, and are virtually untargeted. Companies willing to put the effort into marketing to this group will likely be well rewarded.