More companies get into business of Black History Month

NEW YORK (AP) — From shoes and T-shirts to dolls and tote bags, more companies and brands are getting into the business of Black History Month but trying not to leave the impression that African American consumers are important just once a year.

Some businesses are using February to show off the diversity of their year-round product lines or to draw attention to the creative talent of their African American employees.

Target rolled out a Black History Month assortment that spotlights black-owned brands such as Honey Pot feminine products, Lip Bar cosmetics and Scotch Porter, which specializes in men's grooming. The collection includes books, music and food that are favorites among Target's African American employee resource group, which has more than 1,000 members. The company has been promoting the products through blogs and commentary from its staff.

H&M has a new street wear collection designed in collaboration with Ruth Carter, the Academy-Award winning designer behind the costumes for films including “Black Panther,” “Malcolm X” and “Amistad." The pants, shirts, totes and hats — featuring the pan-African flag colors of red, black and green — debuted in February, but the collection was not billed as a Black History Month tribute.

“Companies are getting smart about making it integrated into the rest of the year, as opposed to one month when you give money to the NAACP or run an ad, as opposed to treating it as an expense, just one of those things we have to do otherwise we’ll get in trouble," said Brenda Lee, founding director of the marketing research firm Vision Strategy and Insights, which researches African American, Hispanic and Asian consumers.

Ezinne Kwubiri, H&M's head of inclusion and diversity for North America, said she notices more companies publicly marking Black History...