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Throughout generations parents have had an impact on their child’s education and learning ability. It is strange for a child to succeed and accomplish a goal that requires 12- 16 years of school without his or her parents or guardians standing next to them to support them with their studies. A parent can have a positive contribution to their children’s success if the child understands what the parent is trying address. This includes the influence that parents have on their children’s shopping and spending habits. Children watch parents and mimic their actions. If parents give into the current trends and if they represent a materialistic lifestyle, their kids will see this and become it.
There was a time when merchants thought of kids as penny-candy purchasers, or worse, as those little nuisances that accompany customers and who should be seen, at most, and not heard at all. Not anymore. A combination of social forces--newly married couples postponing children until careers are established, families choosing a smaller number of children, moms working full time and a growing number of single-parent households--have produced a generation of children that parents give more to and ask more of. The net result is more self-reliant children who have a lot of money to spend and have influence on household spending.
All this translates into new market opportunity for merchants. And not just one market, but three markets in one. Research shows that children, ages 4-to-12, are a primary market of consumers that spend $6.1 billion a year of their own money on whatever they wish. They allocate it roughly in this manner. They spend $2.1 billion on sweets and snacks, $1.9 billion on play items, $690 million on clothing and shoes, $606 million on movies and sporting events, $486 million on entertainment at video arcades, and $264 million on a wide array of other items including music, hobbies and consumer electronics. Kids' spending has increased around 10% a year...