Area Oversupplied With ‘Young & Rustic’
by June 5, 2006 12:00 am 80 views
The “predominant consumer lifestyle” group in Northwest Arkansas is “young & rustic,” according to research by Claritas Inc. and Market Insite Group Inc.
The category includes “young, restless singles” who are lower-income and high-school educated, “living in tiny apartments in the nation’s exurban towns.”
A breakdown of the area’s retail consumers is on the Macerich Co. Web site at macerich.com/dir/71/Demographics. The Macerich Co. owns the Northwest Arkansas Mall in Fayetteville. The information is based on September 2005 data (see chart).
After “young & rustic,” “City Startups” were the next major shopping group in Northwest Arkansas. “City Startups” were defined on the Web site as “young multi-ethnic singles,” including many Hispanics and African Americans.
At No. 3, “Family Thrifts” were described as “young ethnically diverse parents” often with “lots of children.” People in this category tend to work entry-level service jobs and live in “apartment-filled neighborhoods.”
In a three-way tie for third, “Back Country Folks” were described as “poor, over 55 years old” and usually white or American Indian. They are “strewn among remote farm communities across the nation,” according to the Web site.
“Simple Pleasures” describes “lower middle-class singles and couples,” often high-school educated seniors, who held blue-collar jobs before retirement.
“Bedrock America” refers to “young economically challenged families” who live in small, isolated towns throughout the nation’s heartland. A quarter of them live in mobile homes.
We’re not sure why all the area’s rich people weren’t listed in this demographic breakdown. Perhaps they do all their shopping when they’re in New York or Falfurrias, Texas.