As Understanding of Kwanzaa Grows, So Do Sales of Related Artifacts

Last December, Mikkii Bouchard sold 20 greeting cards for the African American holiday, Kwanzaa. This year she has sold about 100.

Bouchard attributes the increase in business to a combination of increased word-of-mouth and stacks of promotional fliers she posted on local bulletin boards. And it doesn’t hurt, she said, that people are finally beginning to understand the meaning of Kwanzaa, a seven-day celebration that begins tonight.

“People are becoming much more aware of Kwanzaa, which is good,” said Bouchard, who sells Kwanzaa-related items out of her Ventura home. “Yes, it is made for black Americans, but it isn’t religious and the principles can be practiced by anyone.”

Kwanzaa, which dates back to the mid-1960s, is a celebration of the harvest season and unity based on ancient African customs. The name Kwanzaa comes from the Swahili term “ya kwanzaa,” meaning “first fruit.”

The celebration centers around seven principles: unity, purpose, creativity, collective work and responsibility, faith, cooperative economics and self-determination. Kwanzaa runs from Dec. 26 to Jan. 1, with a candle lit each day to honor one of the principles.

In addition to the Kwanzaa cards, which she buys wholesale from L’Image in Culver City, Bouchard sells wooden kinaras--the seven-pronged candleholders used during Kwanzaa--that she and her father, Earnest Bouchard, designed and manufactured about 2 1/2 years ago. The elder Bouchard, a woodworker, is known around town for his Whirligig windmills.

Mikkii Bouchard also sells Kwanzaa candles, known as mishumaa saba. The candle set is made up of three red candles, three green candles, and a black candle--colors that are present in the flags of several African nations.

This season, said Bouchard, she quickly sold out of the rare black candles, but she has only sold two kinaras. Bouchard said that with an increased promotion of her business, sales could increase from year to year.

“There are people who want to celebrate Kwanzaa, but they don’t even know where to get anything,” said Bouchard. “They complain because they are frustrated.”

A large part of that frustration is because of the very small number of retail shops in Ventura County that specialize in African American merchandise.

“They are low in number because they are not a lucrative business,” said Oxnard’s Andrew Rucker, president of Ventura County’s African American Chamber of Commerce. “The African motif is not as popular as in the ‘60s and ‘70s. Then, people were wearing dashikis. Now they dress more conservatively or hip-hop.”

And unlike Christmas and Hanukkah, said Rucker, Kwanzaa has not been consumed by commercialization.

“Kwanzaa is basically a back-to-roots type of function. You don’t really buy things for Kwanzaa,” he said. “Instead of buying toys or things like that, you can buy a kid a book.”

And Kwanzaa books are easier to find in Ventura County than Kwanzaa gift items.

Ed Elrod, co-owner of the Ventura Bookstore, has nine Kwanzaa books in stock, and another six he is able to order on request. He said he began stocking Kwanzaa books about four years ago, but on a much smaller scale than he does now.

“Interest has definitely increased,” said Elrod. “A lot of teachers come in trying to educate their kids on multiculturalism. Lots of grandparents, a few young parents, and not all of them African American.”

At the Ojai Table of Contents bookstore, owner Mitnee Duque said she has sold only a few Kwanzaa books in the past couple of weeks. It’s hardly a run on the items, but it’s a virtual boon compared to past years.

“This is the first year I’ve had any requests for these books,” said Duque, who is planning on setting up a Kwanzaa display at the store. “I would guess it is becoming more popular simply because of more awareness of black celebrations and because of the Million Man March.”

During the Million Man March this fall, hundreds of thousands of African American men gathered in Washington in a show of unity.

Because her Kwanzaa books don’t sell all that well, Duque said stocking them is not really a business decision.

“It’s a personal decision,” she said. “Because I’ve been here for 10 years I know my customers. It’s an owner’s obligation to meet everyone’s needs. I won’t stock a lot of [Kwanzaa] books, but I will make it a point of interest in the store.”

As for other Kwanzaa merchandise, there are several shops around town with an African American theme. Shop owners, however, said they have had minimal inquiries regarding Kwanzaa gifts.

Oxnard’s Vernice Texeira, the owner since May of the Ade Fumilayo shop in Ventura, said most of her limited supply of Kwanzaa items have been sold.

“I had a few people come in asking for Kwanzaa cards last month, so that prompted me to get a few items,” she said. “We have a line of Kwanzaa cards, and Egyptian clothing that can be worn for Kwanzaa. We have tablecloths and napkins for Kwanzaa, too.”

Ade Fumilayo, or The Crown Brings Joy, specializes in clothing from Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya.

Rosemary Pace, owner of the Holiday House Arts, Crafts, & Collectibles shop in Oxnard’s Heritage Square, said her Karibu Safari Boutique is a popular spot year-round, but she has had a few extra customers lately.

Each room in the eight-room Holiday House has a different theme. The Karibu boutique, in one of the rooms, features items collected by Oxnard artist Linda Okatch Brown during her annual treks to Kenya. The room is filled with jewelry, kente cloth, woodcraft items, African costumes, African musical instruments, CDs and cassettes, and artistic creations by Brown herself.

“Linda’s room is easy to market because of its uniqueness. It has gained a reputation and a following,” said Pace. “This is a time of year people do visit the boutique. A lot of people with Kenyan heritage can’t make the long journey home. This is a temporary journey home.”

Sylvia Patterson expects Black History Month, in February, to be significantly busier than the Kwanzaa season at Sylvia’s & Son Beauty & Boutique in Oxnard.

Patterson has been cutting and designing hair in her shop for 13 years, but last June she rented out the shop space next door, and stocked it with caftans, dashikis and other clothing imported from Africa, shipped from New York, and of her own design and creation.

“I haven’t had anybody ask about Kwanzaa and I’m surprised. A lot of people celebrate it, but they aren’t wearing the [customary] clothing. February is the big season for wearing the clothes,” said Patterson. “You can go to Los Angeles and see people wearing them, but not so much here.”