The urban legends and myths about how the Millennial generation lives – including where they live – are widespread…and not entirely accurate.
That’s why a new report from the Brookings Institute is most helpful in understanding the emerging demographic characteristics of the population group that represents the future of the lighting and home furnishings business.
The study – “The millennial generation: A demographic bridge to America’s diverse future” – looks at the generation from a number of perspectives, including race, wealth and geographic location.
It’s the latter that the lighting and home industry should find most insightful in making business decisions on where to both allocate resources and look for future growth.
Using numbers that are still lagging a bit, the study explodes the myth that Millennials are predominantly located in urban areas. In fact, Brookings found the spread is relatively minor across four key geo-political areas. As a percentage of the overall population, Millennials represent 24.7% of urban core populations; 23.6% of mature suburbs; 22.7% of emerging suburbs; and 20.9 of exurbs. Not a huge difference compared to some perceptions.
Among its many findings, the report also identified the areas with the highest growth of Millennial populations. The Top Five: Colorado Springs, CO; San Antonio; Denver; Orlando, FL; and Honolulu. At the bottom, the lowest growth was in: Birmingham, AL; Chicago, Toledo, OH; St. Louis; and Youngstown, PA.
And the areas with the highest percentage of Millennials: Provo-Orem, UT; Austin, TX; San Diego; Virginia Beach, VA; and Madison, WI.
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