CHICAGO, Dec. 17, 2008 – Since bursting on the scene in the late 1940s, baby boomers continue to have an outsized impact on the U.S. economy. In fact, the 76 million Americans born between 1946 and 1964 possess an annual spending power upwards of $2 trillion. Consumer packed goods (CPG) retailers and manufacturers that view this group as a single target market do so at their own peril, according to the IRI Times & Trends Report, “Baby Boomers: One Size Does Not Fit All.” Despite sharing many seemingly formative historic experiences, the baby boomer generation prides itself on individuality and is really quite diverse.
“Market leaders who want to most effectively meet the needs of boomers, some of whom are in their 60s, while others are still in their 40s, must identify the distinct and ever-changing attitudes and behaviors of literally hundreds of micro-segments based on income, geography, shopping trip missions, health and wellness and many other factors,” says IRI Consulting and Innovation President Thom Blischok.
Despite the great sense of individualism within the baby boomer generation, there are some broad commonalities among baby boomers that are worth noting. For instance, approximately two-thirds of boomers will continue to work after retirement, some out of financial necessity and others from an eagerness to remain active. Baby boomers, like their Generation X, Generation Y and younger compatriots, use the Internet actively to get information, research products and make purchases online. And, like no other generation before, baby boomers rely heavily on CPG products, such as food, beverages, vitamins and supplements, to sustain high levels of health and vitality. For the CPG industry, the opportunity is immense.
During the next two decades, the entire baby boomer population will enter its senior years. As boomers age, their healthcare needs will also evolve rather quickly, with greater demand for medications and other health-related supplies. Manufacturers and retailers must rethink the value propositions of these products to an aging boomer audience.
Manufacturers should be thinking about innovations, such as packaging suitable for arthritic fingers and labeling suitable for aging eyes. Retailers in areas with high concentrations of boomers should consider displays that bring together a wide range of health and wellness needs. For example, in a kiosk labeled, “Serving the Active Boomer,” shoppers would find items one would expect, including over-the-counter analgesics, age-specific vitamins, rubs and ointments, plus an array of unexpected items, such as herbal teas and energy bars formulated for the 60+ year old body.
The IRI study recommends the following action-oriented steps that retailers and manufacturers can take to meet the needs of the aging baby boomer population:
- Anticipate and proactively address changes in product needs and shopping preferences through frequent and granular consumer and market assessments
- Develop best-in-class marketing, pricing and promotion strategies for key categories; re-evaluate distribution strategies to align with shopping patterns
- Understand the core healthcare needs across key consumer segments; align product assortment and merchandising programs with chronic and/or frequently-occurring ailments
- Re-evaluate existing programs frequently to maximize relevance and response for high-priority categories and segments
- Retailers must support private label initiatives with targeted ads and display-based merchandising; brand manufacturers must re-evaluate pricing strategies to ensure alignment against the value needs of key consumer segments
“The changing needs of an aging baby boomer population, combined with today’s economic transformation that is causing consumers to shift how they live, work and shop, should be driving manufacturers and retailers to completely reformulate how they design, launch, merchandise, promote and price products,” adds Blischok. “To be successful, it’s imperative that marketing approaches are based on a dramatically deeper knowledge of shopper attitudes and behaviours that change rapidly to meet the needs our industry’s largest and most powerful consumer segment.”
About the Report
The Times & Trends report, “Baby Boomers: One Size Does Not Fit All” is available from IRI, the leading global leading provider of consumer, shopper, and retail market intelligence and insights for the consumer packaged goods (CPG), retail, and healthcare industries. The findings of this report were compiled based on IRI Consumer Network™ and IRI AttitudeLink™ and IRI MedProfiler Health and Wellness Survey. To download the reports, visit http://us.infores.com/page/news/times_and_trends.
About Information Resources, Inc.
IRI is the world’s leading provider of consumer, shopper, and retail market intelligence and insights supporting 95 percent of the FORTUNE Global 500 consumer packaged goods (CPG), retail and healthcare companies. Only IRI offers the unique combination of integrated market information, automated and predictive analytics, innovative enabling technologies, and domain expertise. With IRI, leading retailers and manufacturers are able to quickly discover breakthrough insights driving smarter decisions and actions across the enterprise for breakthrough results. Companies around the world depend on IRI for improved productivity, stronger brands, and dramatic revenue growth. For more information, visit http://us.infores.com.
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