Wendy future of retail top

Hallmark caters to LGBT shoppers at Walgreens store

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Hallmark Cards Inc. plans to unveil a merchandising concept catering to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) customers at a Walgreens drug store in San Francisco.

Hallmark LGBT Concept Walgreens SF

Product/visual merchandising and cards are localized for the store, located in a neighborhood where 95% of residents identify themselves as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender.

On Tuesday, Walgreens is slated to hold a grand reopening event for its store in San Francisco’s Castro section that will feature a revamped Hallmark department customized for the neighborhood, where 95% of residents identify themselves as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender — higher than anywhere else in the country, according to a spokeswoman for Hallmark.

The Hallmark department will offer more than 50 cards for the LGBT community, including a collection of 12 StudioINK cards titled “Out and About.” The line will include cards for same-sex marriages, baby showers for two moms or two dads, transgender coming out and other occasions. The products, too, will be more gender-neutral in editorial and captions and have a larger focus on pets, in line with Walgreens’ expansion of its pet department in the store.

In addition, the department will feature more Hallmark Signature cards “to create a boutique feel for this trend-aware consumer,” according to Hallmark.

The section’s visual merchandising will include photos of gay and lesbian couples, LGBT-specific products highlighted by two-foot stripes using rainbow colors and the removal of gender-specific signage identifying products, such as “For Him” or “For Her.”

According to the spokeswoman, the revamped Hallmark section takes product localization to a new level.

“Hallmark is the industry leader in creating solutions for specific consumer-connecting needs — in this case, LGBT relationships,” she stated. “Everything, from the cards and gifts to visual merchandising, is tailored to the local consumer.”

The products and displays stem from research and consumer insights as well as collaboration between members of Hallmark Employees Reaching Equality (HERE), the employee resource group representing and supporting the company’s LGBT community; WPride, Walgreens’ LGBT business resource group; AARCH, Hallmark’s Asian American employee resource group; and others.


ECRM_06-01-22


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