First "Published" August 23rd 2006 4 days after President Clintons 5oth Birthday

Evidence of Boomer Power in U.S.

Happy Birthday Mr. President, and best wishes too to the 5 Americans turning 60 years old every minute of this year. Actually it was Bill Clinton’s birthday on Saturday August 19th and President Bush’s on July 6th and both have joined the 78 million that the US Census estimates are the Baby Boomers.Of course I’m nowhere near this age any more than Bob Messenger is! My position is merely that of a professional empathizing with a target group! I suspect however that many of us can at least share some of the Boomers attitudes in our desire to re-create the taste of favorite childhood memories, its just that there are so many Boomers and that they’ve got the money to do it with.As a specialist in new products I find old ones fascinating. I like to think that I know how to look for consumer insights, to recognize a trend or a new platform and I know lots of example Boomer growth brands in the UK (if there are any long gone ex-pats out there you should see what Marmite is doing) but in the US I have to look for evidence of boomer power.I think I’m seeing it in collections of classic 50’s candy for sale on Amazon, I read that beer is back (not that it ever really went away for some of us) and I can see it in furnishings, even in the styling of radios. What intrigues me however is what companies can do to attract boomer nostalgia purchases.Is it enough to stay true to memory and NOT change?Should the packaging be deliberately retro, should it remind us of its past and spell out the message “Just like Mom Served”? Can your childhood favorite still be best in a world that has changed so much?Or given a changed consumer should the brand change too, to match the needs of a 60 year old?I see that Hostess Twinkies have recently made the first major change to its packaging design in 25 years, but it still features the traditional colors and the product remains the same.Should Jell-O now have added fiber?Could Kraft's boxed Spaghetti Dinners be positioned as Microwave Meals and still appeal?Is it enough to add “Classic Recipe” to Heinz Sloppy Joe Sauce?Would Peter Pan peanut butter be improved with a heart healthy Omega 3 claim? Could Added Calcium persuade us that Tang or Start are Florida Orange Juice replacements?Or is the secret of Baby Boomer Nostalgia that it is as close a copy as possible of the original experience with all the emotions, reminiscences and warmth that childhood memories can bring.If that's the case as innovators our role is only to spot the trend, to match the product, perhaps to promote and then just to sit back and enjoy.Pretty much what Pabst has done with Schlitz beer really, a retro makeover including the iconic bottle from when it was the world's best selling beer in the 1950’s – Cheers.