The reunion market

American Demographics, April, 1996 by Paula Mergenhagen

Like many baby boomers approaching midlife, Erika Judd wasn't sure she wanted to attend her 20th high school reunion. "You're afraid people will be critical of you," says Judd, an office manager in Gaithersburg, Maryland. But a friend talked her into it, and she ended up having a great time.

The mere thought of attending a reunion throws many people into a state of acute anxiety. But as people get older, they become more nostalgic and want to renew past acquaintances. Twelve percent of American adults attended some type of reunion in 1988, according to Roper Starch Worldwide of New York city.

People spend money traveling to reunions and looking good for them, as well as eating, drinking, and being entertained at the festivities. The older they get, the more likely they are to purchase keepsakes of the occasion. Some reunions also offer fund-raising potential. Class and family reunions are currently in a growth mode, because baby boomers are approaching the ages at which people tend to be most involved in such events. On the other hand, the number of military reunions will probably decline, even as new types of get-togethers pick up the slack.

CLASS REUNIONS

Americans currently hold an estimated 150,000 class reunions every year, according to Reunion Research in San Francisco, and the number is not expected to drop off any time soon. In the mid-1960s, baby boomers began graduating from high school. Their numbers pushed up the total size of America's senior classes from 1.9 million in 1963 to nearly 3 million in 1971. The graduating classes of 1972 to 1981 each contained more than 3 million students. These large classes are, or soon will be, celebrating 20-, 25-, and 30-year reunions.

Many baby boomers attend college reunions, too. During the early 1960s, U.S. colleges and universities conferred fewer than half a million bachelor's degrees each year. In 1973, they awarded over 900,000 and, by the mid-1980s, nearly 1 million a year. These numbers guarantee a steady school reunion business for at least the next decade.

Pride in one's achievements and curiosity about how others have fared motivate people to attend school reunions. And although the actual experience is usually pleasant, Americans contemplate reunions with dread. Just 22 percent of adults say class reunions mean "a good time," according to a 1991 survey by Roper Starch Worldwide. This compares with 72 percent who say that going to a restaurant is a good time, and it is even lower than the 39 percent who profess to have a good time at weddings.

Financial success apparently mitigates some of the nervousness people feel about being judged by former classmates. Almost one-third of adults with household incomes of $50,000 or more say class reunions mean a good time, compared with less than 20 percent of those with incomes below $30,000. It's not surprising that successful people show up more frequently at reunions. "They have something to show off," says Edith Wagner, publisher of Milwaukee-based Reunions magazine.

People are most likely to go to their 10th high school reunion. About one-third of graduates attend these events, often the first organized school reunion of their lives, according to the National Association of Reunion Managers (NARM) in Tampa, Florida. About one in four attends subsequent decennial events for 20th, 30th, and 40th reunions. The share drops to about 20 percent for the 25th. Years ending in "5" almost always have lower attendance, says Sunny Meginnis, president of NARM, and many groups don't bother to plan them.

Traditionally, high school reunions have been planned by volunteer alumni committees, and mostly by women. But today, many committees are turning over the chore to professional planning companies. "Women are working outside the home. The thought of locating all these people and putting these events together isn't as palatable as it used to be," says McGinnis, who owns Tampa-based Reunion Celebrations. The high school classes she reunites average about 500 people.

One of the most important functions of reunion planning companies is tracking down graduates scattered across the country. On average, about 20 percent of graduates never find out about reunions because no one can find them, Now, reunions of all kinds have been given assistance by the computer age. Telephone listings for the entire country are available on CD-ROM for a reasonable price, greatly enhancing search capabilities. ReunionNet on the World Wide Web gives people unparalleled opportunities to find and be found.

FROM PHOTOS TO FACELIFTS

Although ten-year high school reunions are the most attended, people buy more products and services in conjunction with 20th and succeeding reunions. "The older the class, the more items sold," says McGinnis. People become interested in purchasing videos of the evening's festivities beginning with the 25th reunion, says Greg Hollander of Class Encounters, a reunion planner in Sacramento, California. They buy the most souvenirs at what is most people's last reunion--the 50th.