Will Boomers Spend Again?

Have we Boomers reigned in our spending for good? This has been the subject of many articles the past few months as the American economy languishes because WE have put our wallets away for all but the necessities. Okay... so Boomers alone don't drive the economy...but we DO represent a big chunk of it. Take a peek at what a recent Businessweek article on msnbc.com says about our spending habits:

When 79 million people — nearly a third of Americans — start spending less and saving more, you know it won't be pretty. According to consulting firm McKinsey, boomers' conversion to thrift could stifle the economy's hoped-for rebound and knock U.S. growth down from the 3.2 percent it has averaged since 1965 to 2.4 percent over the next 30 years. "We would have gotten here in 5 or 10 years as boomers retire, but we pushed it up," says Michael Sinoway, managing director of consulting firm AlixPartners. "Now [companies] are scared things won't come back." And that's why everyone from Mercedes to Nordstrom to designer Vera Wang are scrambling to remake themselves for the Incredible Shrinking Boomer Economy.

Yep. High end for me these days is Target.

Not so long ago, boomers were never going to die. Filled with a self-confidence born of unprecedented prosperity, many thought rising markets would assure their future. If the economy faltered, well, it would rebound more strongly than ever, as it had so many times before. And so boomers spent — and borrowed — as if there were no tomorrow.

So Boomers won't live forever? Bummer. One of my Boomer friends recently mentioned that it had finally hit her that she's not going to get out of 'this one' alive...and by 'this one' she meant LIFE!

One things for sure, our legacy to America is going to last a good, long, time!