The changing face of consumption: the aging of the baby boomers

Many marketers have called the baby-boom generation, i.e., those individuals born between 1946 and 1964, one of the most over-studied and over-defined groups of individuals that has ever hit the marketplace. While it sometimes seems as if the attitudes, lifestyles, and problems of this large generation should be known to all, accurate generalizations about the baby boom are difficult to make. It is a diverse collection of individuals whose needs continue to shape American society. The key challenge to marketers will be to recognize these differences among the generations and take advantage of the opportunities presented to them.