With the bust of the wine industry coming, Silicon Valley Bank's Rob McMillan identifies several reasons for the decline of sales coupled with a surplus of grapes that will last for several years. McMillina put the top of the list an observation that should give everyone in the marketing world pause
Baby boomers, who control 70 percent of US discretionary income and half of the net worth in the US, are moving into retirement and declining in both their numbers and per capita consumption, while millennials aren't yet embracing wine consumption as many had predicted.
The first line puts the death nail into anyone arguing millennials are a prime target market. Baby boomers are the target market as they are the only ones with Money. Granted everyone not a Baby Boomer is paying their tab.
Next line of baby boomers account for half of the net worth in the US is also interesting. The baby boomers are retiring. Their retirement out is the sale of their business. In my experience over 90% of their businesses are worthless at best and negative value is more common. They want to sell to some sucker who will bail them out of their bad habits, but those suckers (aka millennials) are drowning in debt, so taking on a over valuated business to diminishing markets is not in the cards.
So sell to Baby Boomers who have money now and becoming frugal as they age or sell to millennials who don't have money in the first place.
Maybe wine sales will increase as people look for an outlet to escape. Oh wait....Rx market may have that covered already.