Gen X, Y top buyers of infant furniture

By Dana French -- Kids Today, 5/1/2005 12:00:00 AM

About 2.5 million households bought a crib in 2004, and more than 3 million households bought other infant furniture, according to Kids Today's exclusive Consumer Buying Trends Survey. Consumer spending for both products totaled $1.1 billion last year.

Consumers in their prime childbearing years are doing the majority of the buying. Generations X and Y, currently between the ages of 20 and 40, account for 74% of 2004 crib buyers and 61% of other infant furniture buyers. For 2005, Gen X and Y together comprise 80% of U.S. households planning to buy a crib and 75% of households planning to buy other infant furniture.

Preliminary 2003 data from The National Center for Health Statistics shows that nearly 4.1 million babies were born in 2003. And, data indicates a trend toward women postponing children. Birth rates for women ages 35 to 39 rose 6% from 2002 to 2003; the rate for women ages 30 to 34 increased by 4%; the rate for women ages 25 to 29 rose 2%; and the rate for women 20 to 24 decreased 1%.

Overall, households spent a median of $150 on their 2004 crib, according to Kids Today's exclusive survey. More than two-fifths of households shelled out less than $150, and 29% of households spent $400 or more.

Not surprisingly, crib budgets rise with household income. In 2004, households with incomes less than $75,000 spent a median of $120, while households with incomes between $75,000 and $99,999 spent a median of $200 and households with incomes of $100,000 or more spent a median of $500. For 2005, consumers appear to be budgeting more for a crib. Overall, households plan to spend a median of $200 for a crib this year.

While there's no question about the definition of a crib, there is wiggle room in defining the other infant furniture category. We do know cribs, glider rockers and youth bedroom furniture are not included in the category, but we do not know exactly what consumers bought for other infant furniture. They could have bought a changing table, a dresser, a rocking chair, any combination of the three or another product. With that caveat in mind, households spent a median of $150 in 2004 for other infant furniture. Just over half spent under $200 and 21% spent $400 or more. As with cribs, 2005 budgets for other infant furniture are higher. Households plan to spend a median of $250 this year.

Gen X accounted for 69% of crib dollars spent last year and 54% of dollars spent on other infant furniture. Dual incomes and higher salaries give Xers deeper pockets for their crib and other infant furniture purchases. More than half of Gen X women hold down a full-time job and another 14% work part time. More than two-fifths have household incomes of $75,000 or more, and 23% have incomes of $100,000 or more, reflecting, if nothing else, their 10 to 20 years in the work force. Last year, Xers spent a median of $200 on each, more than any other generational group.

The younger Generation Y spent less on their crib last year, a median of $150. At the moment, Gen Y has less to spend since they're just entering the work force and earning lower salaries. But this group is key to home furnishings retailers for several reasons. At 76 million, they're the largest generation since their Baby Boomer parents hit the stores. They appear to be emulating their parents free-spending habits as well. They're also the most likely to buy cribs and other infant furniture in 2005. According to the Consumer Buying Trends Survey, Generation Y plans to buy a crib at a rate 4.2 times higher than their presence in the population. And, they plan to buy other infant furniture at a rate 3.8 times their presence in the population. Generation Y will be target consumers for infant furniture for the next decade.

Hispanics are also likely to buy infant furniture. As with Generation Y, Hispanics are a demographic group to court simply to because of their numbers. At 41.3 million, Hispanics are the largest ethnic group in the United States. And, births among Hispanics are increasing. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, more than 900,000 Hispanic babies were born in 2003, representing 22% of all births. The Consumer Buying Trends Survey reveals that Hispanics plan to buy a crib in 2005 at a rate 1.7 times their presence in the population and plan to buy other infant furniture at a rate 2 times their presence in the population. In 2004, Hispanics spent a median of $142 on a crib and a median of $112 on other infant furniture. Budgets for 2005 are larger, though. Hispanics plan to spend a median of $300 for a crib this year and a median of $225 for other infant furniture.

Consumers ages 45 and older accounted for 20% of crib-buying households in 2004 and 35% of other infant furniture buyers. These so-called grandparents spent a median of $100 on each product. According to the AARP's 2002 Grandparenting study, grandparents spend an average of $500 each year on their grandchildren. The AARP also says there were approximately 70 million grandparents in the United States in 2002 and projects the total to reach 80 million by 2010. Those figures translate into about $35 billion spent each year on grandchildren — a significant amount for anyone's cash register.

Regionally, households in the Northeast and Midwest spent the most on a crib last year, a median of $400 and $375, respectively. For 2005, households in the Northeast and South plan to spend the most for a crib, a median of $425 for Northeasterners and a median of $200 for Southerners.

Households that bought a crib in 2004 also bought

Other infant furniture	61%
Bed linens	44%
Lamp	33%
Wall art	33%
Area rug	30%
Decorative pillows	30%
Glider rocker	9%

Budgets
Percent of households that

Crib			Other infant furniture
	Paid in 2004	Plan to pay in 2005		Paid in 2004	Plan to pay in 2005
Median	$150	$200	Median	$150	$250
Under $100	18%	& 1%	Under $100	28%	3%
$100 – $149	26%	20%	$100 – $199	24%	16%
$150 – $199	15%	25%	$200 – $299	15%	32%
$200 – $399	12%	30%	$300 – $399	12%	10%
$400 – $499	11%	10%	$400 – $599	9%	33%
$500 or more	18%	15%	$600 or more	12%	6%

By household income
Percent of households in each income group that bought in 2004

		Median $ paid		Median $ paid
Under $40,000	1.6%	$142	1.6%	$100
$40,000 – $74,999	2.0%	$100	2.5%	$150
$75,000 or more	3.1%	$425	4.4%	$300
By generation
Percent of households in each generation that bought in 2004
Generation Y	6.2%	$150	6.8%	$138
Generation X	6.5%	$200	6.5%	$200
Younger Baby Boomer	0.6%	$150	0.8%	$150
Older Baby Boomer	0.7%	$100	1.7%	$50
Happy Days Generation	0.9%	$88	1.8%	$100
Senior Seniors	0.6%	$100	0.6%	$100

Demographics of buyers
Percent of households that bought in 2004

	crib	other infant furniture
Age
Under 25	6%	3%
25 – 34	56%	45%
35 – 44	18%	18%
45 – 54	5%	12%
55 – 64	13%	13%
65 and older	2%	9%
Race/ethnicity
Black	7%	4%
Hispanic	7%	6%
White	85%	93%
Employment
Women, full time	47%	52%
Women, part time	16%	12%
Men, full time	77%	80%
Men, part time	6%	4%
Residence type
House	72%	87%
Apartment	17%	4%
Mobile home	5%	3%
Condominium	2%	3%
Twinplex	4%	3%