Baby Boomers Letting Their Innovation Shine AsThey Revive Communities
So the DOWNTOWN ENTREPRENEURSHIP PROJECT http://www.downtownproject.com ,
sister business of my economic development consulting practice Economic Development Visions http://www.economicvisions.com, is a true labor or love for me and 2007 was a great year in which to further expand my examination of the role of entrepreneurship within downtowns and commercial districts. In fact I initiated the largest single study of retail incubators ever undertaken. That will take a few months to birth and bring to fruition.....but it will be well worth it for the downtown and commercial district revitalization communities.
One trend that has caught my imagination is Baby Boomers not only moving back to downtowns and urban neighborhoods, but the fact they are opening businesses in those places!! They want to live there of course because of the cultural and social amenities so readily available to them in those environments--and there is indeed a sense of place in a downtown or commercial district that is simply not available in suburban locations.
Many of these Baby Boomers now have empty nests, 401 (K)s or similar retirement programs upon which to draw, they have pent up creativity and they are of a generation that has broken new ground at every turn as I have so frequently written. They have witnessed societal upheaval and change not to mention astounding technological changes. In fact Boomers expect change and innovation--and have since they were born.
What really drove me to this question of Baby Boomer as entrepreneur or potential entrepreneur in a downtown or commercial district was when I volunteered to do some pro bono work for an organization that is a "semi think tank." They said GREAT, as you would expect, but then they handcuffed me a bit. It seems their economist of choice had convinced them that urban entrepreneurs--entrepreneurs close to the city core--were young, hip and peaking at age 34 or 35--I was never quite sure of the age. They gave me a list of 5 "hot" neighborhoods from around the country to study---- and then we had a slight philosophical difference.
You see my heart wanted to agree with them because it would be a nice study to do and they were/are nice folks. However, my eyes and my intellect were telling me something else. I was working in too many "hip" communities where it was the Boomers who were making the difference-and without trying to be hip--hell they had seen Woodstock, free love, the Moon Landing, The Beatles on Ed Sullivan, experienced the deaths of Hendrix, Joplin and Morrison--had gone through the upheaval brought to us by Vietnam and racial inequality--and of course saw the deaths of three icons, Jack, Bobby and Martin. Hip? Dylan anyone? "Hip" does not need to be explained to the Boomer generation(even as they are disciplining their kids for behavior "unbecoming"). They were on the front lines of hip and are open to change--including technological change. In fact Baby Boomers have a huge rate of web use.
I'll never forget the day I went to the offices of a Gen? consultant who complained that one of his advisors was "Too BOOMER." This consultant loves to employ phrases that sound hip when they really are just a rehash of old concepts, repackaged to sound hip--for example fast growing entrepreneurial companies are now "gazelles" and entrepreneurship is "economic gardening" and incubators are "crowd sourcing". Never mind that there are few if ANY academic studies to indicate how what they are espousing is any different than what has been evolving in commercial district revitalization for years now. Hey it sounds good, it sounds hip and it sounds NEW---gottta have NEW or it ain't any good. This is all done under the rubric of CREATIVITY.
Richard Florida's books on creativity have been great http://www.creative class.com , and I recommend them highly, but I fear he has been misunderstood, co-opted by some and that "some " just don't get it. Some of the crowd that thinks entrepreneurship peaks at 34 or 35 or whatever, do so by citing, in part, the works of Dr. Florida--a big mistake in my opinion. Creativity is not related to age--it is related to mind and consciousness.
I prefer the studies you can find all over the web and academic datat bases on Baby Boomer creativity and entrepreneurship to anecdotes, however I will serve up an anecdote or two. have a colleague who is 75, still works in a multi-media store where he sells classical music but interacts with people of all ages throughout his work week. In his "spare" time he produces and acts in one man shows based on the works of the Ancient Greeks. He also reads the latest books, does the NY TIMES crossword puzzle in about 10 minutes(in pen!) and is as "Hip" as any 20 something I know. In fact, he regularly socializes with 20 somethings because they find him a compelling figure. Go figure.
I recently was doing a market analysis in Brunswick, GA ------------http://www.thebrunswicknews.com/open_access/news/326806617962308.php and met with a number of downtown merchants in their rapidly revitalizing downtown district. These entrepreneurs were Boomers(plus in some cases) and yes...many were "hip"--very hip. Brunswick sits in the shadow of 2 resort islands that attract high net worth individuals from around the world--and they are now attracting this clientèle to the downtown--thanks in great part to the Boomer business owners and the active arts community--also BOOMER -heavy. Heck, the Mayor, a progressive, smart, and knowledgeable guy is also an actor, and has a background in the arts. Not a bad start down the path to creativity I would say.
Many of these business owners are second career folks who "get" the dynamic of a commercial district more than many younger entrepreneurs. That said, there are also great younger, dynamic entrepreneurs in Brunswick--which is the whole point--no? I hold that a successful commercial district or downtown should have a mix of independent business owners who cut across the demographic spectrum. That is why I was so turned off by the faulty logic of that "quasi think tank." First, here is a fact--ENTREPRENEURSHIP does not peak at 34/35 in burgeoning urban districts or small resort towns or small out-of-the-way towns. Period. I have read too much, spoken to too many nationaly-known economists to think otherwise. Moreover, by giving credence to the mid-30's notion it creates an artificial divide we do not need. That "quasi think tank" was just wrong--but they can't or won't sacrifice their credibility to say so. Such is business in the non-profit think tank world I guess. Need those grants for the next study.
All of that said, what we at the Downtown Entrepreneurship Project do is, is help downtowns and commercial districts understand their market and then help them attract potential independent business owners who
will complement existing businesses, will complement chains and will make the area more dynamic. Age and other demographic characteristics do not matter--improving downtowns and commercial districts does!
Best....
Chuck
Chuck D'Aprix
Principal
The Downtown Entrepreneurship Project
202-248-9715
http://www.downtownproject.com
http://www.economicvisions.com
http://www.DAPRIXBLOG.com
Posted by Chuck D'Aprix at 12/25/2007 8:19 AM 
Categories: Downtown Revitalization,Economic Development
Categories: Downtown Revitalization,Economic Development
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