In 1992, an anonymous letter to the editor of Lesbians on the Loose (LOTL), a prominent Sydney lesbian magazine, began a line of questioning around the perceived inclusionary power of the lavender dollar, invoking a sense of consumer citizenship. 

Detailing Toyota’s contact with Bluestone Promotions to target the gay market, the letter noted the lack of data around the purchasing power of lesbians, seen as less desirable than the emerging ‘pink dollar’. Danae Clark has attributed the lack of attention to lesbian consumers to the anti-capitalist stance of lesbian feminism since the 1970s, leading marketers to be unsure of lesbian spending power and desires as consumers. 

The letter asked several key questions of LOTL’s readership, preceding any real engagement with marketers:

Do we want to become a marketing target for advertisers? 

Do we want our ability to consume/purchase merchandise researched? 

Finally, do we care, one way or the other, what happens in the advertising world regarding our image?