A Bright and Brew-tiful Future ... for Older Americans

A couple of Friday nights ago, my husband and I went out to a local brewery. A few brews—what better way to round out a work week? The brewery was packed, and a band was setting up to play a set. We settled in at the bar with our beers, and that’s when I noticed it. As I scanned the room—a large, two-story warehouse-y space—I couldn’t help but see that the clientele was, well, a bit older than I expected. Rather than 20- and 30-somethings, the brewery was filled with 50- and 60-somethings.

This got me thinking. Remember the trope that millennials and Gen Zers love things like avocado toast, craft beer and “experiences” instead of the cars, homes and other “possessions” coveted by Gen Xers and boomers? Had that all changed? Had the “playgrounds of the young”—breweries and the like—become overrun by experience-seeking folks as old as our parents?

After my brewery visit, I decided to do a little research (I do work at a think tank, after all!), and there’s a lot of evidence to explain why you might be seeing fewer young people around places they used to haunt—and several of the biggest reasons are financial. Or, as Cyndi Lauper once sang, money changes everything.

Recent data from Bank of America show that older generations’ spending is growing faster than that of younger generations. Why is this? In January 2023, Social Security recipients received a large cost-of-living adjustment—the biggest in more than 40 years—to compensate for high inflation. At the same time, thanks in part to increasing interest rates, housing costs—which take up a much greater percentage of younger Americans’ spending than it does for their older counterparts—have been on the rise. What’s more, in spite of the Biden administration’s efforts to cancel hundreds of billions of dollars in student debt, the end of the debt payment freeze that was instituted at the start of the COVID pandemic has, for now, meant that tens of millions more younger Americans are once again paying to service their student loans.

Given that millennials and Gen Zers tend to spend a greater percentage of their money on nonessential things, these developments are not surprisingly cramping their style ... and their lifestyles. All this means less spending money that young people can put toward vacations and restaurant visits. Brewery trips, too.

It’s not just young people’s spending habits that might be changing. While millennials and Gen Zers may be forced to tighten their discretionary purse strings, at least in the short term, the rosier financial picture for older Americans—combined with the effective end of the pandemic—is leading to more splurge purchases. (It’s no wonder I’m seeing commercials showcasing happy middle-aged couples on Viking cruises all the time!) In fact, in 2022, boomers and Gen Xers tied as the top two generations that spent the greatest percentage of their annual total expenditures on entertainment—5.6%.

Confidence in one’s financial situation also matters a lot in determining if and where someone spends their money, and again, older Americans come out on top here. An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey from last fall shows that nearly six in 10 adults 30 and older would describe their household finances as good. But fewer than four in 10 18- to 29-year-olds feel the same way. If you’re not feeling positive about your financial situation, you’re likely to be more reticent about spending the money you have on beer out on a Friday night.

While money matters a lot, there’s also a nonfinancial reason why you might be seeing fewer young people out at bars, restaurants and breweries they days: Younger Americans simply don’t go to “third places” as much as other generations do. Third places—as in they’re not home and work, the two primary places people generally go—could be taverns, parks, beauty salons, etc. As Bruno Manno wrote for Discourse a while back, gathering in third places can help build a sense of community, but the very concept “is foreign to many of us today, as everything from work to dinner and a movie can now be done from home or delivered to our doorstep.” This is especially true today: More tech-savvy younger Americans are far more likely than older ones to use grocery delivery services or order restaurant delivery. Frankly, when we have the technology to not gather in third places, we simply won’t choose to do so.

As I realized that night at the brewery, it’s clear that times are definitely changing. When the band started playing, the music was so loud that we quickly paid our tab and retreated to a back corner where we could hear ourselves think and play a little tabletop shuffleboard. Meanwhile, the boomers and Gen Xers took over the dance floor area in front of the band. I asked myself: Since when did I become the fuddy-duddy?

Meanwhile ...

What I’m cooking: By the time you’re reading this, I will have hosted a little family dinner party featuring one of my favorite types of cuisine: Moroccan. It’s really the perfect kind of food to eat in the dead of winter—satisfying and hearty, with enough fresh fruits and vegetables to lighten things up and make you think of warmer days ahead.

If you’re interested in having your own Moroccan feast, I’d definitely recommend this chicken and apricot tagine as your main course. “Tagine” refers not only to the braised meat being cooked, but also to the unique pot in which it’s traditionally prepared—a large shallow pot with a conical lid that helps keep the food inside moist as it cooks. Alas, I don’t have a tagine of my own, but a big stockpot will stand in just fine for the recipe.

This recipe is a really great melding of savory and sweet—I particularly like the honey, ginger and cinnamon in the dish and how wonderfully they enhance the more savory ingredients you’d expect in a stew. When you’re ready to eat, put the tagine over some couscous, and you’re all set!

Finally: Next Sunday, Mercatus communications director Kate De Lanoy returns to the Editor’s Corner. And in the meantime, Discourse will be featuring new pieces from Naomi Lopez on the arrival of 3D mammography to the big box store, Pat Horan on the Fed’s balance sheet and Michael Ard on the possibility of political violence this election year. We hope you have a great week!

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