AMERICAN CARRYING MORE AFRICAN-AMERICAN, HISPANIC TITLES

JOEL ELSON

SALT LAKE CITY -- American Stores Co. here is expanding checklane merchandising of Hispanic and African-American magazines to its Lucky Stores, Jewel Food Stores and Acme Markets subsidiary units.

Checkout sales increased 5% to 10% at 35 Jewel Food Stores, Melrose Park, Ill., which introduced ethnic magazine titles in the first quarter, according to Michael J. Porche, executive vice president of Distribution Services Inc., a publication sales and marketing firm based in West Palm Beach, Fla.

Lucky Stores, Dublin, Calif., will begin this month a similar revamping of checkstand periodicals with ethnic titles at 29 stores with a large Hispanic customer base, and 21 units catering to African-American shoppers. The chain plans on expanding the program to its Northern California division stores in late August, said Porche. All subsidiaries and divisions had no comment on the ethnic magazine title merchandising when contacted by SN.

Acme Markets, Malvern, Pa., is slated to implement the program in stores during the first quarter of the new year, Porche added.

"The idea is to make the titles available while customers are in the store shopping," said Porche, rather than through subscription sales or at other outlets.

The chains, working with DSI, tailored the title mix according to store demographics, scanner data, frequent-shopper statistics and market profiles, he said.

Titles the chains are merchandising at checkout racks include: Heart and Soul, Essence, Ebony, Vanidades, Christina, Cosmol Espanol to Fura TV Novelas, Selecciones, Enterese, Erese and Muy Interseant.