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Stevens, PA—“When we think of affluent consumers, we think of money: how they earn it, how they spend it, and how to attract their spending for goods and services. But time is the ultimate luxury.”

So says Pamela Danziger, president of Unity Marketing. Time is the ultimate luxury for all consumers, including affluent consumers, but both income and generational differences affect how consumers perceive time. In a new white paper, "Luxury of Time: A Generational Perspective," Danziger identifies each generation—Boomer, Gen-X, and Millennial—and how they perceive time as a luxury. 

When it comes to money, affluent consumers have plenty of it, she says. But time is finite, and how people spend their time is far more important to them in the long run than how they spend their money. "For luxury marketers, this has tremendous implications in terms of highlighting the experiential nature of purchases, raising the importance of service, and enhancing the individual's personal experience of time," she says.

Some key differences between the generations:

* Baby Boomers are edging into retirement and empty nesting. They see less time ahead than behind, and wondering what they will do in the 20-30 active years they have left. They’ve “been there and done that” and now they want to check off a bucket list of quality experiences that will give meaning and value in their lives. Day-to-day pressures begin taking a back seat to greater quality-of-life goals.

* Generation Xers are the busiest, between career demands, growing families, and aging parents. They are on the go 24/7, but feel like they need 36/8 to get everything done. They want peace, relaxation, time to reflect, reconnect with themselves and loved ones, and time to go off the grid.  Their idea of luxury is a five-star experience where they can take a break from the rush and be pampered.

* Millennials, inherently wired, want active experiences where every minute is enjoyed to the max.  For Millennials social experiences are key, offering cocktail hours and chances to meet and greet. But college debts loom large for this group, so budget sensitivity is a must.

For luxury jewelers, offering an experience that makes it worth the customer's time to shop--along with the added benefit of selling an emotionally-charged product--will go a long way toward keeping these customers active, engaged, and buying.