Members of Generation Z (the age group born between 1997 and 2012) drank significantly less alcohol at concerts and affected smaller venues, billboard report.
The decline in Gen Z alcohol consumption is hurting the main source of revenue for many establishments that already have low profit margins. David Slutes, director of entertainment at the Club 325 convention in Tucson, noticed a 25 percent difference in how much money was spent on booze compared with older generations.
“Coming out of COVID-19, everything in the live music business has been turned upside down,” Slutes told billboard“We weren’t sure why the numbers were like that. Then we dug a little deeper, and in every campaign targeting the Gen Z crowd, we saw wildly different numbers.”
Dayna Frank, president and CEO of First Avenue Productions, a Minneapolis-based concert venue and promotions company, pointed to the same behavior while speaking at the Music Biz conference in Nashville. “One of the big trends we’re seeing is that Gen Z isn’t drinking as much,” she said. “They either eat food before they come, or they have more sobriety, mental health (emphasis) … most of the ticket price goes to the band, so what’s really there (at the venue) is the drinks. It’s not It will be a sustainable source of income.”
it all fits Study in 2020 A study by Ty Schepis, a professor of psychology at Texas State University, found that 28 percent of college students ages 18 to 22 had abstained from alcohol in 2018, up from 20 percent in 2002. Meanwhile, the number of binge drinkers in the same age group has halved over the same time period.
during an interview billboardGen Z tend to drink less than older generations, Schepis added, but also noted that “it’s a continuation of a trend.” However, marijuana use among college students increased from 33 percent to 37 percent.
Other small venue operators, like Mikey Wheeler, general manager of Austin’s Mohawk, have seen an overall decline in alcohol sales, which he said “is coming not just from Gen Z, but also from our older audience.”
With insurance and labor costs rising, smaller venues are under pressure to make up for lost revenue, whether that’s adding non-alcoholic offerings, promoting venue merchandise, or researching CBD-infused beverages.To read the full report, visit billboard.
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