Those Coupon-Clipping, Brick-and-Mortar Millennials

The millennial generation may be tech-savvy and progressive, but in many ways they express a frugality not seen since the Great Depression generation. And they like to shop in traditional stores.

A new report by Coupons.com and research firm Bovitz dispelled some myths, and uncovered some surprising truths, about this generation’s consumer preferences and habits.

For instance, the study found that millennials like to buy in brick-and-mortar stores, with 81% expressing a preference for buying groceries in stores and more than 70% saying they prefer in-store for household goods, beauty and personal care items.

Fewer than one in five millennials say they discovered deals via Facebook or other social media channels in the past six months.

Instead, millennials rely on email offers (42%) and mobile apps of retailers or companies that provide discounts (36%) to find bargains.

Financial wellness is top-of-mind with millennials, just like it was for the Great Depression generation.

More than 78T of millennials work to maintain good credit scores. They pay credit card bills on time, with more than 80% saying they pay more than the minimum due. Almost 50 percent pay their credit cards in full each month.

Millennial parents are avid coupon-cutters, with more than two-thirds saying they use coupons for baby/toddler products. They also clip coupons for groceries (60%), household goods (55%) and beauty (49%).

So, how is this generation different than the ones that immediately preceded it? For one thing, it’s more frugal and financially responsible. After all, just one-third of Baby Boomers pay their credit cards off each month.

Maybe it’s not so surprising that millennials have more in common with the Great Depression generation than they do with the Boomers – given that the last decade had more in common economically with the 1930s than it did with the 1960s, 70s, 80s or 90s.