soulsight®

The spectacular marketing blitz put out by Walmart and Target, advertising their 10pm opening Thanksgiving night or Target’s “Doors Open at 12am‘ made me wonder who really had time to share the holiday with loved ones when there were specials to be had and lines to be formed.

Just when I thought couldn’t take one more “black friday extravaganza” commercial I started thinking about the MIllennials—the idealistic youth—who savor life experience, community and individuality. They were likely celebrating, “buy nothing day” instead choosing to sleep in and spend time with their loved ones over stampedes and “Christmas Champ” type frenzy.

Or did they? Is the well documented “consumer rapture”
that comes from getting a good deal too strong to ignore or did they follow their ‘buy local’ mantra and head uptown Saturday instead?

Since the exaggerated consumption seen this time of year makes it easier to spot cultural rituals, watching how (and where) MIllennials spend can shed light on their future spending habits and patterns.
If we know one thing about this new generation it’s that they are anything BUT predictable (to the chagrin of marketers). You put them together in a focus-group type setting and they are all about organic everything, locally raised free-range beef, Toms Shoes www.toms.com, and Warby Parker glasses www.warbyparker.com. Follow them shopping, however, and their behavior tells a different story. Convenience and the here-and-now often trump the lofty ideas. They live their lives through a series of trade-offs, “I’m a vegan except for when I go out with my friends’ for steak” or “I want to buy organic but sometimes can’t afford it”.

On the flip side, they want connected communities, both on and off-line, personal relationships with the folks that run the store or cook their food and buy more from craft-makers and independent designers when compared to older generations.

This is all good news for small, independent business and has taught the big guys some invaluable lessons. It’s why chain grocery stores have introduced private label organic lines, and display huge signs screaming “Local!”. It’s also why chain restaurants like Chipotle proudly proclaim the use of local ingredients. The question is, where will Millennials draw the line between the thrill of getting there first, their pocketbooks, and their convictions—or is it once again somewhere in the fuzzy middle?

When the final numbers are tallied we’ll learn even more about how brands and business need to act and communicate to succeed with today's youth. Hopefully we'll get an even clearer picture of Millennials and their heros—those who have met their needs, on their level, and where that line is between what’s right... and what’s right enough.