The days are getting longer. My drive to the office is not as dark coming in and it’s slightly brighter going home. However, it is still the dead of winter, so during these shorter and colder days, I just want to stay curled up in bed all day. But like everyone else, I find that there just isn’t time for that kind of thing. I have to work for a living and time is money. New money. Seriously.

Time magazine recently published an article stating that GenX women get less sleep than, well, everyone. They are wide awake, rapid-fire asking themselves questions that can clearly wait until after sunrise (“Did I pay the mortgage?” “Did I make my mom’s doctor appointment?” “Did that virus protector update? …Let me check.”). They feel like there isn’t enough time to complete even the basics in life anymore.

Now, more than ever before, time is considered a tangible luxury, and lots of people, like GenX women, can’t financially or mentally afford to possess it. Once again, as in blogs past, I am turning to the Millennials and GenZ citizens of the world for their perspective on this.

Values Over Value$

A few months ago, Amtrak threatened to get rid of their dining cars for what they considered a “more contemporary” eating experience. With that, a generation declared “NO WAY!” So much so that there is a Change.org petition to ask Congress to look into keeping the dining car experience alive and well. Turns out, many Millennials really like having the opportunity to take it easy and socialize face-to-face.

Millennials and GenZ both share values that define their versions of luxury. They see values over value. This is a whole new chapter, folks. We need to be ready for this shift if we want to keep them as customers.

• By 2020, GenZ will comprise 40% of global consumers, controlling $143 billion in spending in the U.S. (twice that of Millennials)
• By 2025, GenZ and Millennials will represent 55% of the luxury market

To them, the value is in comfort and in time to just simply be, instead of the amount of money spent on a lofty price tag.

TREND ALERT

Clothing for this Spring will be repurposed, reused and reduced. Notice a pattern here? As a society we are reconsidering what we think about sustainability and its role in our every day.

This is where items like our brand-new District Re-Tee (DT8000/DT8001) comes into play. It covers all of the bases: the 100% recycled shirts are made from reclaimed cotton scraps and repurposed polyester derived from items like single-use plastic bottles. This reduces the impact on the Earth’s resources and lessens the amount of waste that may have otherwise ended up in a landfill.

I would like to repeat the following message: We are in an era where luxury is redefined. Our consumers support brands and styles that support their causes, activities, communities and their budgets. Luxury is measured in comfort and in time spent getting comfortable. Excess has made an exit and time is money, but it truly doesn’t buy happiness.

See you in February when we continue our conversation about what makes up lux. It will be Black History Month and we will talk about how Black culture has had a role in defining luxury worldwide.