Kassie and I climbed into our bush taxi to head back to Kara. It was supposed to be a bus taking us north, but we had been informed that morning that something was wrong so they arranged these Toyota vans to go instead. It felt good to be back in Togo, but it was also easy to forget that we even went home.
While we were waiting for the car to move, a man jumped in the front seat holding a large calendar in his lap nearly the size of a standard piece of poster board. It was held close because it represented honor and respect to this young Togolese man holding it closely.
There is an annual search by Togolese every January to secure a most dear calendar from as many organizations, businesses, or associations as possible. Concurrently, Togolese businesses are competing annually to offer more and better calendars to the public. It’s a glorious, yet simple, example of competition and the fight for a larger consumer base. The calendars vary in size, quality, and of course accuracy; all of which appear to be directly proportional to the health or wealth of the business. Any legitimate or well-respected business in Togo must make these calendars and give them free to their most valued customers. There are calendars from banks, the post offices, microfinance institutions, the Port Authority of Lomé, the LK bus company, the Togolese Water Society, Togo Cell, Togo Telecom, and many, many more.
This man in the taxi was holding his BTCI bank calendar dear because it was evidence to him that he was a loyal customer to the bank, worthy of receiving this tribute to the New Year. He would be transporting the calendar home to Kara where he could place it with his BTCI 2006, 2007, and 2008 calendars. They stand all in a row; all of great importance. Previous years will not be removed. The only cost is the chance referencing the wrong year. There have been numerous times when I have consulted a calendar with a host only to realize that we were looking at the wrong year. This isn’t a major problem though because the large posters are more used as trophies than actually referring to dates. A small cost for such a great souvenir.
When one enters another’s home in Togo, the walls may be covered with fabric, framed photos of relatives, and more than likely they will also be partially covered by these calendars. Previous years hang high above, covered in dust, with memories of that great day when the manager decided to give this person a calendar. Greeting guests in a room covered with calendars from a variety of years and organizations adds quick prestige to any home.
It’s impressive that something so simple can have such a strong affect on the Togolese and also the marketing strategies of businesses. A tailor arrived at ACM Microfinance in Kabou the other day to accept his calendar gratefully, but he did not hesitate to admit that ours was far inferior to that of Alafia Pharmacy of Kabou. Being half the size and made of cheap cardboard is nothing compared to the large, glossy, and colorful calendar of the pharmacy. So which organization has a better standing in the community?
The same occurrence exists for day planners, but only the top businesses can offer these more expensive prizes free of charge to customers. The large enterprises, such as Togo Cell, will give them to those who may have monthly contracts or are close relatives of management. Similarly to the calendars, they will not be used as day planners, but rather folders for paper or simply a notepad as if the days weren’t already inscribed on the pages.
Togolese aren’t really sure how this phenomenon got started, nor do Americans know why beanie babies got crazy or Hard Rock Café t-shirts. It’s just a different product for a different culture and people will continue to collect them for years to come. If a company stops distributing them, the customers would complain harshly, feel unloved by the company or even unloved by a suspected brother or sister that didn’t come through with his or her New Year’s duty. Who would want to break such a pattern?
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