SAN FRANCISCO—Wouldn't it be convenient if someone had clear, intelligent answers to most of your CRE-related questions? Problem solved. Nina J. Gruen, a.k.a. Ms. Real Estate, a.k.a. the principal sociologist overseeing market research and analysis at Gruen Gruen + Associates, is here to answer readers' questions.

Dear Ms. Real Estate:

I have been reading and learning from your articles on the retailing sector for many years, and have found most of your predictions have come to pass. My question is, how will the Millennials impact the retailing sector now and in future years?

—My Bread and Butter Comes from the Retail Sector

Dear Bread and Butter:

First, thank you for being a loyal long time reader. Would have loved for you to share which of my predictions failed to come to pass – perhaps they still will!

Millennials' buying patterns are and can be expected to continue to change all aspects of the retail industry, from advertising to delivery. Given the size of this demographic (87 million of the 14-32 year age cohort) and the reality that they will be consumers for many years to come, catering to their purchase behavior will be a must for marketing success. All of us who have observed the behavior of this group know that technology has changed their shopping and behavioral patterns. But they are perhaps equally influenced by the sense of entitlement that has been implanted within many Millennials by our society's efforts to create self-esteem in children and adolescents over the last twenty-plus years. As most Millennials see it, there are no longer winners and losers, but everyone is a winner.

This feeling of entitlement has resulted in the desire for instant gratification – I want what I want when I want it (IWWIWWIWI), which has led to the increasing importance of same day delivery. Can drone delivery be far behind?

Technology has led to this generation's being connected 24/7, so while the number of close, personal in-person friendships has decreased, social media friendship has increased by the hundreds, if not thousands. The effect of these social media friendships has been that Millennials' purchase decisions are based on “likes” of their friends, rather than through traditional advertising channels, including radio, TV, print and billboards.

Establishing brands will become increasingly difficult unless the social media “likes” help assure the Millennials will have trust in the products they purchase. Whether the Milliennials make their purchase from a store (showrooming) or Internet (webrooming), they will search what the competition has to offer and pursue an intensive hunt for bargains.

Millennials, particularly males, purchase far less material goods than those in previous generations, and the females do not feel comfortable about their prospective purchase unless they feel they've gotten the best deal possible. So the requirement for ongoing sales will become a fact of retail life.

Even as this demographic ages and enters their higher-earning middle years, I do not believe their basic shopping patterns will significantly change -- dependence on family and friends for the support of their purchase decisions and the hunt for the best buys out there.

Instant Insights /

My Bread and Butter Comes from the Retail Sector

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