Food (including soft drinks) and cars are key drivers of the US economy, employing 16 million and 4.4 million people, respectively. But these two sectors may soon begin to shrink, upending a 70-year trend that began after World War II and literally shaped American life.
SAN DIEGO – Tom Cruise’s sports-agent character in the 1996 film Jerry Maguire spoke one of Hollywood’s great catchphrases: “Show me the money.” But the smarter lines come from the wife of Maguire’s sole client, Rod Tidwell. When the best Maguire can offer Tidwell is a gig endorsing waterbeds, the savvy spouse exclaims, “He deserves the big four: shoe, car, clothing line, soft drink. The four jewels of the celebrity endorsement dollar.” Today, two of those four jewels are cracking, and the fissures will remake the US economy.
Ask a European to describe Americans, and you’ll likely hear two things: big people and big cars. Sure, it’s a stereotype, but on average Americans do weigh 20% more than their transatlantic neighbors and drive 32% bigger cars. This is not just a matter of pounds and inches. Food (including soft drinks) and cars are key drivers of the US economy, employing 16 million and 4.4 million people, respectively. But these two sectors may soon begin to shrink, upending a 70-year trend that began after World War II and literally shaped American life.
Why, after so many generations raised on Twinkies and V8 engines, are American consumers’ tastes changing? Blame kids and chemists.
SAN DIEGO – Tom Cruise’s sports-agent character in the 1996 film Jerry Maguire spoke one of Hollywood’s great catchphrases: “Show me the money.” But the smarter lines come from the wife of Maguire’s sole client, Rod Tidwell. When the best Maguire can offer Tidwell is a gig endorsing waterbeds, the savvy spouse exclaims, “He deserves the big four: shoe, car, clothing line, soft drink. The four jewels of the celebrity endorsement dollar.” Today, two of those four jewels are cracking, and the fissures will remake the US economy.
Ask a European to describe Americans, and you’ll likely hear two things: big people and big cars. Sure, it’s a stereotype, but on average Americans do weigh 20% more than their transatlantic neighbors and drive 32% bigger cars. This is not just a matter of pounds and inches. Food (including soft drinks) and cars are key drivers of the US economy, employing 16 million and 4.4 million people, respectively. But these two sectors may soon begin to shrink, upending a 70-year trend that began after World War II and literally shaped American life.
Why, after so many generations raised on Twinkies and V8 engines, are American consumers’ tastes changing? Blame kids and chemists.