What's The Hot...

They're getting older and better--at spending, that is. For the 77 million baby boomers, the empty-nest syndrome has given way to something more akin to a celebration: Without the expense of kids, boomers have more money to spend--and they're happy to spend it. Marked by sophisticated taste in everything from food and wine to home furnishings and automobiles, boomers are purchasing more goods and services than any other consumer group.

Capitalizing on this booming market, Boston-based General Cinema (GC) recently launched its first luxury theater-restaurant combination in Lombard, Illinois. GC's reservations-required Premium Cinema coddles its patrons with high-backed, gently rocking leather armchairs; expansive legroom; and side cocktail tables. Dinner (complete with wine list) is served in the theater's cafe.

According to a recent Condé Nast Publications' survey, New Accents on Affluence, in addition to their pursuit of creature comforts, members of the high-income boomer set actively maintain and preserve their youth and readily employ new technology as a means of realizing their goals. Look for entrepreneurs to benefit as a new-millennium definition of the "middle years" takes shape.

This article was originally published in the January 1999 print edition of Entrepreneur with the headline: What's The Hot....