In 1985 Shimano's New Dura-Ace had been a huge hit with the "yuppie/dink" crowd, but the competition oriented high end still remained loyal to Campagnolo. Shimano looked to cash in on their success by targeting a 2nd tier group specifically at the "yuppie" market but adding a "fashion statement" element that was so popular with that crowd. After all, the market was currently in a trend of "Miami Vice" influenced paint liveries. Santé's white and "hi-tech grey" finish was neutral, yet set it apart from the competition (until the copycats arrived), with the white implying a superior purity.
I remember Jim Redcay analyzing Santé soon after it was upgraded to full group status. The article appeared the bookend "Trends" column of Bicycling magazine in early 1988. It was facetiously titled "Do You Have That Crank in Lavendar?" or something along that line. He must have forgotten that Shogun had already introduced a Celeste model using the Santé mini-group and Sugino 75 components, with the crankarms colour-matched to the frame in Shogun's version of celeste.