If you pay much attention to the world of retail sales, you will notice a trend: worry.
You will certainly find short-term worry about not enough people buying enough stuff—but that worry has always existed. In a society that bases its measures of success in terms of home prices, market values, and GDP, there will always be a need to prompt citizens to buy more and more.
But beyond the short-term unease, there is a long-term anxiety clouding the retail market. This long-term worry is far more significant and can be summarized in one sentence: Millennials don’t want to buy stuff.
Business publications have been covering the story for years: Fast Company, Fortune, TIME, The Atlantic, Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal, even Goldman Sachs.
Recently, in a radio interview for a station in Montreal, I was asked if I thought the desire to downsize was age-related. In the mind of the interviewer, it seemed to make sense that the older one got, the more they recognized the emptiness of material possessions and the need to minimize.
I assured the interviewer this was not always the case. In fact, from everything I can tell, the desire to minimize and declutter stretches across each of the generations. It is growing among the Silent Generation, the Baby Boomer Generation, Generation X, and the Millennials. In my new book, The More of Less: Finding the Life You Want Under Everything You Own, I highlight each of the unique forces drawing people of every age to minimalism.
But for the sake of this post, let’s consider some of the reasons Millennials are refusing to partake in the retail game as the rules are currently constructed and why retail giants are worried about it:
Technology and Mobility: The Millennials are the first generation born after the technological revolution. The world feels smaller to them than previous generations and they are intimately connected to one other—regardless of geography. Coffee shops have become the new office, collaboration has become the new competition, and mobility has become the new stability. And, as many Millennials will tell you, it is difficult to live a minimalist lifestyle with a house full of stuff.
The Sharing Economy: Technology has ushered in a new connectedness with one another. Additionally, it has provided a platform on which access can take precedence of ownership. With the touch of a thumb, we can now borrow someone else’s home, bike, car, book, music, unused stuff, or countless other possessions. Ownership has never been less necessary.
Environmental Concerns: The Millennial generation is the most environmentally conscious of all age groups and this influences their buying habits significantly.
Living Preferences: The Wall Street Journal once reported 88% of Millennials desire to live in an urban setting and that one-third of the generation is willing to pay more because of it. Over the past several decades, retailers have banked on the growth of suburbia—bigger and bigger homes, further away from town-centers, fostering isolation, individualism, and personal ownership. As younger generations migrate toward smaller dwellings in walkable communities with shared amenities, consumer consumption will continue to slow.
Experiences > Possessions: As I have argued in the past, minimalism is not the end of spending. Even when minimalist principles are adopted on a large scale, the transfer of money will still take place—money will just be spent on different things than physical possessions (you can read more here: A New Minimalist Economy). The Millennial generation is proving this to be true, spending less on possessions, but more on wellness, food, drink, and experiences.
Debt/Unemployment: Certainly, significant economic trends have brought with it new shopping habits. The Millennial Generation has graduated college and entered the workforce in the middle of the Great Recession. In fact, most economic studies would indicate this generation is entering one of the worst working environments in modern history burdened with more student loans than ever.
Corporate Mistrust: Economic forces (housing bubble, student debt, shrinking of the middle class) and generational preferences (the environment, social justice) have resulted in a generation distrusting of large corporations and “the 1%” who run them. According to one study, 75% said that it’s important that a company gives back to society instead of just making a profit. While it would be interesting to know how previous generations would have answered the same question, one thing is for certain: the Millennial Generation is acting on this belief and choosing smaller, local retailers for their purchasing needs because of it.
There is one more factor that I think is quite significant. There is growing evidence that the Millennial Generation is “delaying adulthood.” At least, they are delaying adulthood as defined by economists (getting married, buying homes and cars, having children). Researchers point out that marriage is important to Millennials, they just want to do it later—the same with parenthood.
It remains to be seen whether the economic conditions of their upbringing have shaped Millennials to be minimal by nature or whether future economic growth and rites of passage will cause them to slip into the same excess of ownership that previous generations have fallen into.
But I am hopeful for the Millennial Generation. At the very least, they have examples to learn from. For example, both their parents and their grandparents continue to live beyond their means in crippling debt.
Millennials appear to be a generation hard-wired for minimalism.
I hope the trend continues.
Alan Foote says
Thank you for writing this piece. As a millennial I absolutely identify with what you’ve written, especially the paragraph where we tend to replace stuff and things with experiences. I’ve been writing on this subject as well: https://minmylife.org/2016/10/01/minimalist-vision/
I look forward to reading your work in the future.
Claire says
I’m defo not a millennial (I’m hitting 40!), but I love the minimalism lifestyle concept and recently sold almost all of my possessions to enable me to rent out my home and take a break from the rat-race to enjoy travelling for a while. There are probably fewer non-millenials doing this but it is definitely spilling over into different generations. I’ve done it because time and experiences are far more precious to me now than money but ‘living by my means’ has always been my life moto. I’ve never been someone who ‘keeps up with the Jones’s’ and I’ve never bought things that I can’t afford. Having less belongings means I have less to clean and less to think about or worry about when I go to bed at night but I understand that it’s a HUGE life change to embrace and that it’s not for everyone…but it has been one of the best things that I’ve ever done in my life. On the flip side I’ve worked in online-marketing for over a decade and have watched how advertising has evolved over the years – the last three to four years have changed the game dramatically and I really do think that a HUGE number of companies need to wake up to this new wave of consumer, a more ethically aware, non-materialistic gen. Long gone are the days of the ‘buy, buy, buy!!’ message.
J. says
Not a millennial, but I agree with most things about minimalism and this text, except for living in an urban setting. I would be happy with a tiny flat easy to clean and to take care of, but I’m not happy with the exploding prices of housing costs, the conditions of the housing, and the crowded, stressful and dirty big cities (I live in one). I’m not the tiniest bit impressed by huge concentrations of people.
Meg says
My sons are so debt averse that they don’t want to go to college. They take classes one at a time online, or at the local community college, bookstore, yoga studio or rec center-when they can afford it. They consider themselves autodidacts and lifelong learners. They refuse to spend money on education just to prove to someone that they have spent money on their education.
Miri says
I hope that shops catch on and improve the quality of the goods. Less stuff but better quality!!
Morgan says
Personally I think the pursuit of stuff leads to major depression. My family and I recently downsized and got rid of most of our stuff, and we have never been happier! I wanted to comment that as a millennial, the economy is definitely a factor. Not only do we have to be careful with our money, and we may distrust corporate entities, but for me, I see collecting things in this economy to be a total jerk move. It is weird to me that people collect things and display them, just so they can say that they have them, to impress others, to show off their status and such. When only a few people own all of the wealth in this country, it’s exceedingly rude! Owning a giant house, regardless of carbon footprint, is something I see as selfish and boastful when we have so many out on the streets. Just my 2 cents. :) Great article.
Cortney says
Great read! So true! I think of my parents generation and what a mess they are and created. So many have so much debt, little to no retirement and just too much junk to show for it. Also, I believe there is so much greed in that generation and so much damage to the environment. I hope this generation continues in this direction.
Lizzie Hough says
Excellent article. Alas, I guess my husband and I are veteran millennials (even though strictly Baby Boomers) and minimalist. We saw this day coming and lived accordingly throughout our 40+ years of marriage. I liken our life walk to the Israelites coming out of Egypt….we walked our children through the desert but they get to live in the Promised Land…IF they can keep it. :)
Dyan says
I am a Millennial (well, on the cusp at least – 33 years old) and I agree with many of the comments here about how consumption has changed (we are buying more and more digital stuff and less physical stuff, but it’s all still stuff, and it all costs money). I also echo the part about student debt, but one thing not mentioned is that student debt is the only debt that isn’t cancelled if you file for bankruptcy, so it’s with you forever. Our generation has also learned that debt is bad, so we try to avoid it when possible (pay much more for an apartment in the city than a house because you don’t want to carry a mortgage, for instance). But there’s hypocrisy inherent in this; while we’re not willing to carry a mortgage because we don’t want housing debt, we’re more than willing to carry student loans because we feel it’s an investment in our future (the same thing our parents said about their houses a short generation ago).
One thing I didn’t see mentioned was that salaries have not kept up with inflation over the years. A salary of $44,000 in 1995 had the same buying power as a salary of $69,500 does today – it’s hard to buy a bunch of stuff as a Millenial when you’re “making less” due to inflation and having to pay off student loans. Who knows what our consumption would look like if salaries were in line with what they were in our parent’s generation and education was as affordable as it was for our parents?
Millennials have also put off a lot of things in life – we drive later, graduate from college later (because even a bachelor’s isn’t going to get you that far anymore), get married later, have kids later, etc. I think when Millennials “grow up” and our salaries support the house and car and being able to spoil our children, etc., we’ll start to see a shift in this generation. I’m already seeing it begin – I own a house and have a nice car since my salary supports it and the house is the only debt I have, and my friends and colleagues of my generation (with similar salary) are all starting to pay off their student loans and use the “extra” money to buy houses and nicer cars, and buy a bunch of things for their kids since they can afford it now. Lets give it 10 years and see how this generation turns out when our salaries are closer to having the same buying power as our parent’s salaries did.
And even though we, as a generation, may not be spending our money on “things,” I do still see people in my generation going into credit card debt to take vacations and have “experiences.” I think consumerism is shifting, but not necessarily going away, and unless we continue to educate people about debt we’ll be in the same boat we are now, albeit without the physical clutter in our houses.
Karen T. says
Very well said, Dyan. Lots of thoughtful comments — thanks for sharing.
Caro Benedict says
I come from a family with a history of OCD and hoarding going back three generations. My parents house was filled with absolute crap and was a nightmare to clear. They owned NOTHING that was of any value or use to anybody. Even their clothes were too poor to be donated to a charity shop. I have to fight with my own OCD because having been brought up with very little money and having nothing decent myself, in the past I tried to build walls of protection around myself with STUFF. Thanks to this site and others like it I have learnt how to deconstruct my life with stuff. Now I am old myself I try to donate as much as I can to help others and live with as little as possible in a POSITIVE way. But dealing with a poverty mentality is hard. I applaud all of you younger people rejecting a consumerist lifestyle that just sees you as a product and not a person.
Deanna says
I agree with you. Being raised in poverty makes you so aware of “things” and the possibility of their future need. Both my parents (divorced and separate homes) have a hoard. My husband and I are cautious of our spending and reject the “keeping up with the jones” mentality. We partook for a while and it financially ruined us. We now own a respectable double wide that we paid cash for. We pay for a new car (for traveling and work), and decent cell phones (also work). Everything else we keep super cheap. We are very thrifty and like to be able to use our money to let ourselves and our children experience life. People are so quick to judge you on your “things” especially when they have no clue. When they find out I am living in a 4 bed/2 bath home mortgage free….they feel a bit silly. We have what we need and if I need something I don’t have…I’m sure one of my parents will certainly have it in their piles! :) I don’t pass judgement on my parents and their stuff or get upset knowing someday that I will have to clean it out. They have always had my back and would give/loan me items I don’t have. It’s a blessing that we all get to pick our pat. We should feel grateful that the relationships with our friends and families who have more “stuff” can allow us to be helped when needed. Just my thoughts…