Gen Z’ers not drinking enough at concerts?

Well folks, as reported by Billboard, it seems like the young ones, Gen Z (born between 1997 and 2012), are shaking things up by drinking less at concerts compared to previous generations. This is causing some headaches for smaller venues that depend on selling alcohol to make a profit. David Slutes, the entertainment director at Club Congress in Tucson, found that alcohol sales dropped by a striking 25% on Generation Z-targeted nights. Whoa!

The president and CEO of First Avenue Productions, Dayna Frank, noted that most of the ticket price covers the band’s expenses, so the venues rely heavily on beverage sales to stay afloat. Unfortunately, this is not a sustainable revenue stream. It seems like Gen Z isn’t as interested in getting sloshed as their predecessors.

In fact, a 2020 study by Texas State University found a 28% abstention rate among alcohol for those aged 18-22, which is a considerable increase from 20% in 2002. While it’s good news for public health, small venues are struggling to adapt to these changing trends. I mean, how are they going to keep the lights on if people aren’t pounding drinks all night?

Maybe it’s time for venues to start stocking non-alcoholic options or CBD-infused drinks. Or perhaps, they should try and take more of a percentage of merch cuts from artists to make up for the gap in profits (I kid, I kid. This was sarcasm). Who would have thought that sobriety in the music industry could cause such problems?

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