SALEM, Ohio — A recent article in the Wall Street Journal titled “The U.S. Economy’s Secret Weapon: Seniors With Money to Spend” is confirmation of what we in the group travel industry have known for years: The most overlooked and underappreciated sector of American society just happens to be the 50-and-over population.
The Madison Avenue agencies, run by 35-year-olds with MBAs, have missed out on the strength of this sector’s economic drivers for years, probably because they never learned about it in business school or pop culture. But here are the facts about older Americans: Their money is green; their health is excellent; their willingness to spend is unbridled; and they have a ton of disposable income.
Let’s address the senior market as we in the group travel industry know it. Seniors have money. Recently, people 65 and up accounted for 22% of all spending in America, and that is up from 15% in 2010.
So how are they spending all this money? Travel ranks No. 1 on their list. That’s great news for readers of this publication.
It’s important for the travel industry to recognize these encouraging signs. Since 1982, spending by older households has been up 34.5%. The spending of younger households, in contrast, has risen only 16.5% over the same period.
This spending growth is being accelerated by the number of baby boomers, the youngest of which are 59 and retiring in record numbers. Americans 70 and older hold 26% of household wealth in America, according to the Federal Reserve. That’s the highest percentage since they began keeping records.
Beyond having money, boomers enjoy the best health on record, enabling a lifestyle of leisure travel. The above numbers indicate growth for the future of the travel industry in general. But they miss the one overlooked factor that drives group travel: the desire to be with friends, family and people of similar interests.
That’s why it’s a great time to be a group travel planner or a tourism industry professional. More seniors have the health, wealth and desire to travel in the comfort and safety of a group than ever before.
