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I was both frustrated and pleased to read the article Older Consumers Will Reshape The Business Landscape in the April 9th edition of The Economist. I was pleased because I was flattered that an esteemed publication like The Economist shares pretty much the same insights as mine some nine years ago when I first started this blog. In 2007 on this blog’s home page, I wrote, “Very few companies have fully realized the immense opportunity that baby boomers present for their businesses. As marketers, we must consider the needs of this demographic now, more than ever, as the aging population increasingly grows in importance.” The British magazine echoed the same sentiments: “Yet companies have been relatively slow to focus on this expanding market – certainly slower than they were to attend to the youth-quake (a term coined by Diana Vreeland, the editor-in-chief of Vogue in 1965, to describe how baby boomers were shaking up popular culture).”

The Economist now replaced this term with a “grey-quake” instead. The potential of baby boomers as a marketing target is huge, not just in Canada, but worldwide. According to the publication, those over 60 constitute the fastest-growing group in the populations of rich countries, with their number set to increase by more than a third by 2030, from 164m to 222m. Older consumers are also the wealthiest and the over-60s currently spend some $4 trillion a year and that number will grow.

But I was frustrated because it seems like marketers have made very little progress in targeting the greying population. The publication pointed out that The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) calculates that less than 15% of firms have developed a business strategy focused on the elderly. The magazine’s sister organization, The Economist Intelligence Unit, found that only 31 percent of firms it polled did take into account increased longevity when making plans for sales and marketing.

I’ve always said that one of the main reasons for this lacklustre progress is because marketing to older people is not perceived as sexy. The other reason, as pointed out by The Economist, is that young people dominate marketing departments and think that the best place for the old is out of sight and mind. Apparently, Britain is no different from North America. A study by fast.Map, a marketer, and Involve Millennium, a consultant, found 68 percent of British 65-74-year-olds “don’t relate” to advertising that they see on television.

Because most greying baby boomers consider themselves at least 10 years younger than their age, the surest way of alienating them is to talk down to them or treat them as old. When Procter & Gamble repackaged some of its dental products as “selected for aged 50-plus consumers,” its sales plunged. In the U.K., Bridgestone made a mistake by promoting a new line of golf clubs as one for pensioners, thus producing poor sales.

However, The Economist said that “change is in the air.” A report by the Mckinsey Global Institute (MGI) points out that older consumers are one of the few engines of growth in an otherwise sluggish global economy. While BRIC countries are drastically slowing down in growth and millennials around the world suffer from the twin burdens of student debt and the lingering impact of the 2008 financial crisis, the older demographic seems to be the only hope for despondent marketers. MGI calculates that pensioners in the developed world spend an average of $39,000 on consumption compared with $29,500 for the 30-44 age group. The publication pointed out that “the old are becoming the new new thing.”

In Japan, NTT DoCoMo not only produced a phone with large keys and a big display screen, but also redesigned its marketing, promoting the new phones during bus tours for pensioners and providing classes in shops to explain the ins-and-outs of apps. Electronics manufacturers are also producing devices that are designed specifically for old people. For instance, Independa, based in the U.S., manufactures a monitor that sends an alert if something goes south for an elderly person, making it easier for the frail senior citizen to stay in their own homes rather than to move to nursing homes.

New, innovative ideas appealing to older consumers also appear to be on the rise in Canada. I’ve posted on this blog on November 11, 2014 about the launch of a Canadian venture, Blaycation (www.blaycation.com), a bucket-list travel adventure company providing customized, curated luxury-focused travel for baby boomers. Since its launch, the company has been doing well as an online travel planner for baby boomers and mature adventure seekers. Its website features over 20 personally-designed tours that include many exotic travel destinations and bucket-list adventures including an Irish Castle Aristocratic Experience hosted by the 7th Earl of Erne.

Although I remain skeptical about how long it has taken marketers to focus on the mature population, it is encouraging to see that companies around the world are making an effort to take the older population more seriously. Marketers should really take heed when one of the most influential publications in the world is hopeful that baby boomers will continue to change everything they’ve touched, including retirement!

Last month, I’ve blogged about the need for luxury retailers to target baby boomers. This latest BrandZ study further supported the fact that although consumers in North America and Europe continued to reject conspicuous consumption, those who could afford a luxury lifestyle are no longer restraining. But luxury has been redefined – flaunting is being frowned upon and there’s a deeper appreciation  for the craftsmanship that went into each product creation. Those brands that capitalized on design leadership and brand heritage are clearly winning in the luxury retail sector.

Examples of luxury brands who ‘get’ it were Louis Vuitton, Burberry, Gucci, Chanel and Hermès.

Louis Vuitton launched a program to encourage young artists with publicity and financial support, while continuing to enhance its heritage in travel to preserve relationships with the brand’s traditional following. It also broadcast its London fashion show on YouTube. Louis Vuitton remained in this study as the highest-valued luxury brand and increased in value by 23 percent. This doesn’t surprise me because here is a brand which has successfully diversified to different age demographics and lifestyle sectors without alienating its maturing, diehard fans. Remember JLo, Mr. and Mrs. Bono, Keith Richards and Sean Connery all being featured not too long ago in their ads?

Burberry sent personalized messages to the mobile phones of customers, inviting them to view the brand’s London fashion show streamed live to a Burberry store.  According to the BrandZ study, Burberry continued to enjoy year-on-year double-digit increases in all markets. Gucci turned some areas of its stores into small workshops where customers could view leatherworkers crafting handbags. Chanel entered e-commerce for the first time. Hermès’s brand value increased by 41 percent. These are all brands that protect their exclusivity – e-commerce is important to draw younger audiences, but accessibility only applies, for most of these brands, to accessories rather than the entire range of products.

Boomers grew up with most of these luxury brands. But their experience with these brands could be different now – fashion magazines, for example, compete with bloggers for influence; fashion shows are now streamed online in addition to being broadcast on TV; in-store experience and special events continue to create a connection with customers. One way or another, luxury brands are no longer aspirational for boomers – they are attainable should boomers desire them.

What intrigues me and most media is the exclusive naming right of this diamond. It is traditional that large pink diamonds are bestowed a name by their first owners, a title which stays with the gem throughout history. Given that this particular stone has never been made available to the public, full naming rights are included with this extraordinary purchase. Like the Hope Diamond, the Agra Pink, and the historic Darya-i-noor and Nur-al-ain stones, the owner can select a lover’s name, a family name or mark a specific occasion in history.

For baby boomers, in addition to possibly owning a piece of collectible item as jewellery, perhaps it’s the exceptional investment value that will attract them. According to our client, CIRCA Auctions, based in Toronto, a recent Hong Kong auction of a five-carat pink diamond set two global records: for the most expensive diamond per carat ever sold at an auction, and the most expensive pink diamond ever sold. Quoted by The Toronto Star today, Ari Levy, portfolio manager of TD Asset Management, said that in times of economic uncertainty, diamonds have shared certain characteristics with gold.  “It is a store of value and a hedge against inflation that people turn to,” he said.

Given that the gold market has been hitting a new-record high, perhaps boomers should consider investing in pink diamonds instead? Interested investors should certainly attend the upcoming auction at the Park Hyatt on October 3 or bid online at www.circaauctions.ca.

The glossy magazine published by America’s AARP, a powerful lobbying organization for the over-50s, and its Canadian counterpart Zoomer, published for CARP by ZoomerMedia, are bursting with ads. If those advertisers have got their market right, this group of customers can be persuaded to buy a variety of products, from travel and financial services, to mobile phones, medicines and comfy beds.

Some businesses are already adjusting their ranges to cater for the grey market. Volkswagen, for example, has developed a car called the Golf Plus that has higher seats and more space than the standard model. A number of consumer packaged goods manufacturers have started making smaller pack sizes for older, smaller households. Japan, which has already had lots of practice with older consumers, has developed some ingenious new products for the sandwich generation. They include a furry robot seal, sold as a pet substitute, that has proved a hit with lonely ‘mature’ folks.

As previously posted on my blog, advertisers are often accused of trying too hard to sell to the young when much of the spending power is now concentrated in older age groups. But marketing to baby boomers and seniors is not that easy. Attempts to ‘seniorize’ ads, for example, have mostly drawn a poor response because their targets think of themselves as younger than they really are. That refusal to acknowledge being ‘old’ will only get stronger as the boomers start transitioning to seniors.

There are many shades of grey as this is such a heterogeneous group. Barack Obama is a trailing-edge boomer while Hillary Clinton is a leading-edge one. Both ran for president of the United States and the former won. When boomers become seniors, some may already be in frail health and living in old-age homes; while others may still be running for president of the United States, as John McCain did last year.

With the demographic reality of an ageing population, this makes sense as the fashion industry realizes that the disposable pounds, euros and dollars lie in the pockets of a much older age group. Of course, we need to remember that older women now look better – so most mature women models are now proud to let people know their age. The biggest satisfaction for older women boomers must be J. Crew‘s recent accomplishments  – donning senior citizen Lauren Hutton as its 2009 spring cover girl – and, at the same time, supported by U.S. first lady Michelle Obama and her daughters. Who thought J. Crew can be cool again?