Stop The Presses: Gen Z Is Drinking Now
By Richard Thomas
For much of the last year, the storyline on the whiskey industry has been the American whiskey market has caught a cold and the whole world is coughing. While the softening sales numbers are undeniable, much of the commentary accompanying the news has been questionable to say the least. Supported by mostly anecdotal evidence, the mainstream media has promoted the idea that Gen Z was turning away from whiskey in the same way the Boomers turned away from it in the 1970s and 1980s. The implied or stated conclusion was a whiskey industry apocalypse was right around the corner.
As someone who has been poking holes in this storyline all along, I’m thrilled to share the latest data that puts egg aplenty on the folks who pushed it. The latest numbers indicate Gen Z is now drinking just about as much as anyone else.
So what is actually going on? The data suggests the following:
- Delayed market entry due to financial constraints. Or, simply put, Gen Z was broke a few years ago, so they weren’t spending much on liquor. Once a Zoomer gets some money, it turns out they are just as wet as anyone else in America.
- Gen Z is generally not as hedonistic as Gen X and especially not Millennials. This is a concept also born out in the statistical studies about how much sex Gen Z is having. The answer for both inebriants and sex is “less.”
- As I’ve been pushing, it is not so much that Gen Z is turning away from alcohol or whiskey specifically in favor of THC products (misinformation pushed by the New Sober movement), but that the cohort as a whole has many options to choose from for mind-altering substances and prefers to be eclectic.
