NEWSWIRE: 5/16/18
- Fully 49% of Millennial parents will remain loyal to a brand despite the availability of cheaper options, compared to just 30% of older parents. Millennials’ reputation as thrifty shoppers is trumped by their desire to stick with the products that work for their family. (National Retail Federation)
- NH: One striking finding of this study is how much better educated and more affluent Millennial parents are than Millennial nonparents. While this may be partly a quirk of NRF's less-than-fully randomized sample, it also reflects an underlying reality: The biggest drop in fertility over the last 20 years has been among teens and immigrants, both groups that tend to pull down the SES of moms. Another key finding is that, though moms of all ages rank price first in importance, Millennial moms rank quality just as high while older moms rank quality in clear second place. What about third place? Older moms say convenience. Millennial moms say personal service. This runs smack against the impatient Millennial stereotype. In fact, Millennials are all about hi-touch as well as hi-tech. After avidly "researching" products before buying, Millennials, once satisfied, are more loyal to what they've found. When it comes to brand loyalty, Millennials are a work in progress. Early in life, while single and unattached, they have developed a well-deserved reputation for ignoring product labels. (See: "The Ebbing of Brand Equity.") But we believe that, as more Millennials get married and develop social attachments, they could well become America's next "big brand" generation.
- As e-bikes become more widespread, the number of deaths has increased dramatically—a trend almost entirely attributed to male cyclists over age 65. The youthful indiscretions of aging Boomers could result in a public health crisis of a different sort. (Portland State University)
- NH: In so many ways, Boomers keep pushing the edge in their lifestyles--even when it goes beyond what their no-longer-youthful physiques will allow. This study tracks e-bike accident rates in the Netherlands. But the death toll may rise faster in America, since e-bikes here are higher-powered (few of them being limited, as they are in Europe, to 250 watts).
- A new piece explores the dystopian, male-dominated world of “incels”—or involuntary celibates. Recent acts of violence perpetrated by incels may soon prompt some difficult conversations about sex, social capital, and the danger of marginalized males. (Vox)
- NH: The motorist mass murder last month in Toronto (10 dead; many more injured) attracted new attention to the so-called "Incel Rebellion." What is to blame? A rising tide of "toxic masculinity"? Inadequate supervision of the mentally ill? A late-capitalist commodification of sex (something Marx always predicted)? Here's an essay that explores the darker cultural corners of this movement and suggests an overlap between the rise of incels and the rise of the sex robot industry (incels call women "femoids").
- A growing number of wine industry experts suggest that vintners turn their attention to Generation X. With Boomers aging out of the population, the industry may be tempted to jump straight to the large Millennial Generation—but unlike their younger peers, Xers have been known to have a drink or three. (Forbes)
- Companies searching for Millennial employees are pitching unusual perks, including monthly cooking classes and free breast milk delivery. While older generations may scoff, Millennials don’t mind their employers treating them more personally—i.e., less like workers and more like family. (Chicago Tribune)
- NH: Gen Xer: Let me balance life and work and cash out my benefits. Millennial: Let me merge life and work and amp up my benefits. (See: "Millennials Want More Than Just a Paycheck.") What kind of benefits? OK, most Millennials are not sold on free massages and free breast milk delivery. But what about help with college loans, tax prep assistance, relocation benefits, free meals, paid days off, pet insurance, identity theft insurance? Yes, apparently.
- More young people are embarking on a “social media cleanse,” restricting their use or cutting themselves off entirely. The current mood regarding social media has come to resemble the one surrounding drugs and alcohol; those who worry about their social media use can even use online self-help tests to determine whether or not they are addicted. (DMJ Zone)
- NH: If you don't believe tech-lash is happening, read this story. I guarantee you that, within a year (if not sooner), we will see circular therapy groups that start something like this: "Hi, I'm Karyn, and I have a digital addiction problem." This trend points to a steep deceleration in the rising average time Americans spend on digital platforms, with predictable implications for digital ad revenue projections. (See: "Tech-Lash Batters Silicon Valley.")
- The FDA is cracking down on retailers that it says are selling Juul e-cigarettes to minors. The kid-friendly marketing of many popular e-cigarette brands (complete with innocent-sounding names and fruity flavors) gives the illusion that they are a safe alternative to smoking, while in reality the jury is still out on their health effects. (The New York Times)
- NH: When Trump-appointed FDA Chairman Scott Gotlieb last year gave e-cigarettes a regulatory reprieve, he pointed out that that the lives of millions of older (Boomer) smokers could be saved by getting them to switch to smokeless means of nicotine delivery. Consumer advocates and anti-tobacco groups, however, believe that the risk of creating new younger (Millennial) smokers is too high--and that most or all types of e-cigarettes should be banned. Any evidence that e-cig makers (like PAX Labs, maker of Juuls) are targeting youth in their marketing tends to push parents and educators to the prohibitionist side. And when the public speaks loud enough, the FDA responds.
- A new piece examines the rise in “gray divorces”—that is, divorces that occur at or after age 50—which now account for one-quarter of all divorces. While the sheer growth in Boomer-populated age brackets is partly at play, Boomers are also far more open than previous generations to the idea of ending their marriages while they still have time to move on. (Quartz)
- NH: What's pushing the new tide of "gray divorces" is not just the larger number of over-50 Boomers. It's also the higher rate at which over-50 married people are divorcing--while the rate is actually declining for young age brackets. The author claims that most of these Boomers are divorcing for "traditional" reasons. IMO, most of the reasons she cites have a generational ring to them. For marriage to work, it requires (like any other institution) members to accept certain defined roles, in this case, husband-wife and father-mother. Boomers came of age questioning these roles. And now, later in life, many feel these scripts are expendable.
- Macy’s has purchased Story, a small retail shop that offers experiences like yoga classes and cooking workshops. The ailing department store evidently hopes that experience-loving Millennials will flock to Macy’s-brand boutiques that offer more than just clothing and housewares. (The Washington Post)
- A consortium including Goldman Sachs, Comcast, and NBCUniversal has invested $100 million in wedding-registry startup Zola. The startup, which enables couples to ask for cash to put toward honeymoons and other big expenses, has quickly become a hit among cash-strapped, experience-loving Millennials. (PR Newswire)
DID YOU KNOW?
Doomsday Prepping Goes Glam. When we last wrote about the “doomsday prepper” movement in 2016, sales of survival gear were surging amid red-zone fears of a Hillary Clinton presidency. (See: “I Will Survive.”) Now, a recovering economy and a GOP-controlled White House has given rise to a new, high-end offshoot. “Bonus prepping,” as The Wall Street Journal calls it, is about “adding survival value to the things you already use and love versus loading up on stuff you’ll only use if the world ends.” Bonus preppers may be interested in a $275 pair of jeans from fashion retailer Outlier, made of “slash-resistant” material that Outlier bills as “the world’s strongest fiber.” Those with the means may want to consider the Tesla Model X, which comes complete with a “Bioweapon Defense Mode” that keeps passengers safe in the event of a germ warfare attack. At its essence, though, bonus prepping is all about practicality, according to John Adama—who advocates for simple lifestyle changes (like staying fit) that foster well-being while keeping practitioners prepared.
