newswire: 9/12/2020
- Guitars are having a moment, with longtime industry giants like Gibson and Fender reporting huge (and unexpected) jumps in sales. These companies have spent decades trying to recapture the guitar-obsessed 1970s and ‘80s, but it’s only now—in quarantine—that interest among young learners is soaring. (The New York Times)
- NH: Before the pandemic, the guitar industry was in free fall. From 2007 to 2017, guitar sales fell by over one third. And in 2018, Gibson, whose guitars were played by celebrities from Jimmy Page to Bob Marley, declared bankruptcy.
- But like so many other pastimes, the pandemic has breathed new life into the industry. Stuck inside with stimulus checks and ample free time, people have been looking for anything to do. (See "America Goes Fishing.") And learning a new instrument certainly passes the time.
- The data show that guitar sales have skyrocketed since the pandemic began. Fender recently announced that they are set for their biggest year in sales volume on record. Taylor Guitars announced that June 2020 was their biggest ever month in orders received. And the Fender Play app, which teaches guitar chords, saw their user base increase from 150,000 to 930,000 from March to June.
- Most of these new players are Millennials. The Fender Play app reported that 20% of its users were under 24, while 70% were under 45. Some might find this surprising since guitars aren’t commonly used in today’s pop music. They are more associated with the type of artists Boomers listened to--think Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, and Peter Frampton, who are all Boomers themselves.
- Is this an obstacle for Millennials? Not at all. We have seen time and time again how Millennials widely admire the pop culture achievements of Boomers. Think of all the Millennials who spent hundreds of hours mastering Guitar Hero in their teens. Or think of all the recent Super Bowl halftimes starring 65+ artists, like The Who, Stones, Tom Petty, Aerosmith, and Bruce Springsteen. (See “The Aging of Aquarius.”) While Beyoncé might not be strumming a guitar, Millennials still think it’s cool to rock out like Queen.
DID YOU KNOW?
- The Ultimate Influencers: Mom and Dad. Brands have poured billions into influencer marketing in order to reach young buyers. But according to Morning Consult, influencers can’t compete with another group closer to home: their parents. When 18- to 23-year-olds were asked if their favorite brand across 11 different product categories matches one their parent uses or has used, 51%, on average, said yes. That’s compared to 36% of adults of all generations. Majorities of young people use the same brand of cereal, potato chips, soap, laundry detergent, and cleaning supplies as their parents, versus 42% of adults overall. These gaps are particularly pronounced for beauty products and skin care: Less than 30% of all adults use the same brands as their parents, but 42% of this group does. Some of this may be attributed to phase-of-life differences; many teens are probably using these products alongside their parents. But these results still suggest that despite having many more brands to choose from and discover, young people continue to follow their parents’ lead.
