Yet to suggest there isn't anything new in tween town would
be misleading. Most obviously, there's a greater ethnic
diversity among preteens in the United States now. Then, too,
there's the interactivity of technology. For instance, whereas
baby boomers absorbed product information through TV commercials
while growing up, their children are able to actively explore the
Internet in order to discover the latest in merchandise. And
today's kids aren't just connected via modem--they possess
cell phones and pagers to boot. Such strong communication ties are
welcome given the phenomenon of more two-working-parent
households.
"The increased percentage of working mothers has shifted
more responsibility to the preteen," Acuff says. "By
2001, [these kids will wield] something like $300 billion in
influence."
Which is a reality that checks the heartbeats of all but the
most jaded of entrepreneurs. Even corporate giants are eagerly
targeting young spenders. For starters, there's hip home
furnishings chain Pottery Barn's mail-order venture, Pottery
Barn Kids. Add to that DKNY Kids, Limited Too, Gap Kids and
Abercrombie & Fitch's well-publicized forays into kidswear,
and you get a picture of how influential tweens are becoming. There
are also kid-designated soaps, bottled water, radio and TV
networks, platform shoes and--seriously!--mutual funds.
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"This group definitely deserves its own stores,"
insists Dennis, who predicts Ch!ckaboom's 1999 sales figures
will reach $2 million. "People say to me, `This is such a
narrow niche.' It's not. It's a fantastic niche, and
it's only getting better."