August 29, 2011

Single Active Adult Men

Single Active Adult Men: Reaching for the Stars

 

Debuting in 1987, the hit television series Thirtysomething reflected and augmented the beginning of young middle-age for a generation of Boomer males. Often ridiculed as a self-indulgent examination of the yuppie lifestyle, the series also scrutinized their journey from the idealism of youth to the responsibilities, angst and nihilism that can accompany middle age. This popular television series, along with breakaway success of The Big Chill, a feature film, paralleled the lives of millions of men in search for meaning, economic means and a self-styled, liberated manhood – a post-feminist male. Characters from both the series and movie modeled many generational ideals such as success without selling out, multiculturalism, worldliness, creativity, therapeutic relationships, homogenization of sexual identity, and acceptance of non-conventional lifestyles, including homosexuality.

These formative influences have contributed to the outlook of not only a post-modern male but also a fully independent male consumer, best typified today by single Boomer men.

A significant number of Boomer men have never married and an even greater number have divorced and are living alone or with non-romantic roommates. We estimate about 15,600,000 or 20% of the Boomer generation are both single and male. Single Boomer males make most of their shopping decisions independently, so marketers and advertisers have untapped and unique opportunities to reach those who are both male and living alone or without a female spouse. We have seen the growth of many new industries because of this group of men seeking larger lives. F. Scott Fitzgerald, a renowned author and adventurer, understood the vagaries of middle-age when he observed: “Vitality shows in not only the ability to persist but in the ability to start over.” Baby Boomer men are confronting myriad challenges to their former lives. For most, the status quo isn’t. Yet they won’t accept just subsisting; rather most choose reengagement through reinvention.

When addressing the international Educational Travel Conference, Brent Green identified numerous emerging opportunities for the hospitality industry, especially for such a rich, experiential and peripatetic market segment.

Single Boomer men today are ready to walk, run, kayak, cycle, and ski the world. And we’re ready to show you how to get their attention.

Stay abreast of this dynamic market. Visit Brent Green’s BOOMERS BLOG.

Order your copy of Brent Green’s MARKETING TO LEADING-EDGE BABY BOOMERS for an eye-opening immersion into generational marketing.

Order your copy of Brent Green’s GENERATION REINVENTION to discover an unprecedented section on marketing to Baby Boomer men.