.
2. Many Boomer women are well established in their careers and at the
peak of their earning potential. What's more, eight out of 10 Boomers say
they don't plan to retire, with an estimated 52 percent growth in the
category of women 55+ projected in the workforce by 2010.
3. Within the next decade, many Boomer women will not only continue to
earn income but will also be managing inheritance windfalls from their
parents and their husbands.
One-third of women who become widowed are under
age 60. Boomer women are likely to outlive their spouses by on average, 6 to
9 years.
4. Even in traditionally "male" product categories, women are responsible
for more than half the purchases.
Women make 80 percent of home improvement
decisions, buy 65 percent of all new automobiles sold every year, and spend
more than $55 billion annually on consumer electronics, a $96 billion
industry. Add this to the fact that disposable incomes are highest for women
between ages 45 to 54, and it becomes evident who's driving a majority of
the numbers.
5. In 2004, women age 35 to 54 represented the highest proportion of Web
surfers, compared with both male Boomers and all members of younger
generations. Direct catalog marketers calculate that 70 percent of all
online purchases are made by women, the majority of whom are in the Boomer
demographic.
6. 6.7 million strong and counting—companies owned by women account for
30 percent of America's small businesses.
This sub-segment skews heavily
toward women age 35 to 54. Eighty-six percent of female entrepreneurs say
they use the same products and services at home as they do in their
businesses.
7. If you think these middle-aged women are set in their ways, think
again.
According to the Center for Women's Business Research, almost seven
in 10 women over age 35— about 68 percent—say that the older they get, the
more they enjoy trying new things.
BOOM: Marketing to the Ultimate Power Consumer — The Baby Boomer Woman
By
Mary Brown and Carol Orsbom, Ph.D.
AMACOM; September 28,
2006; $24.00
ISBN: 0-8144-7390-3).
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