Hipsters Will Save Our Economy

In a rather striking article this week, Forbes recognizes hipsters as possibly the one demographic group that’s still happily consuming, at least in the retail sector. The article argues that while hipsters – here very broadly defined – might not make a lot of money now, they are a huge, powerful consumer group, and marketing dollars spent to capture them now will likely pay off in the future. Not to mention the fact that, even today, retailers which cater to the “creative class” are thriving while the rest of the retail industry struggles:

While retailers geared toward consumers under 45–the Gap, Abercrombie & Fitch and Express–have struggled in the past year to increase sales, hipster-centric clothing outlet Urban Outfitters has reported record results.

Citing many other examples including Marc Jacobs (“Ten years ago, college kids carried backpacks…On any college campus today you’ll find moneyed girls carrying Jacobs’ $1,000 leather handbags”) and Cooper Mini (“the company saw a 15% year-over-year increase in the number of units sold” while other car sales have lagged) — the article makes a good point.

Can hipsters buy our way out of a recession?

Forbes: The New Counterculture’s Buying Power

via Racked