Fast Company reports that Whole Foods “has become the first prominent supermarket chain to run a Ramadan marketing campaign--and they're hoping Muslim customers will return the favor as they break fast. Even though Muslims traditionally forego meals during the day, lavish evening Ramadan meals could mean big bucks for the natural foods giant ... as well as brand loyalty from a demographic not traditionally courted by megastore advertising.” The story goes on: “While it is a relatively small promotion, it also marks a new benchmark for the Muslim-American community: the first coordinated Ramadan promotion by a national supermarket chain.”
- KC's View:
-
This is more a “toe in the water” effort, as opposed to a full-body dive into waters that could be treacherous; after all, there remain considerable anti-Muslim pockets in the US. So, Fast Company notes, Whole Foods will be using the internet to run a virtual ad campaign, as opposed to using in-store advertising.
To me, here is the interesting paragraph: “There are approximately 1.8 million Muslims living in the United States. Of these, Arab Muslims are a distinct minority; the bulk of the population consists of African-American converts to Islam and South Asian (Pakistani, Indian, Bangladeshi and Sri Lankan) Muslims. And 45% of Muslim immigrants report annual household income levels of $50,000 or higher--placing them squarely in Whole Foods' demographic.”
