Grey pound

{{Short description|Term referring to the purchasing power of elderly people}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2019}}

{{Use British English|date=February 2019}}

{{Cite check|date=February 2019}}

In the United Kingdom, the expression "grey pound" is used in the context of marketing and or retail sources and refers to the purchasing power of elderly people as consumers.{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1570063/Grey-pound-set-to-drive-retail-spending.html|title='Grey pound' set to drive retail spending|first=Gary|last=Cleland|date=21 November 2007|publisher=|via=www.telegraph.co.uk}} It is frequently used as a label for movies aimed at an older audience.{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-26971676|title=Thompson bemoans 'grey pound' films|date=10 April 2014|publisher=|via=www.bbc.co.uk}}{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2012/mar/08/older-viewers-rescuing-cinema|title=How older viewers are rescuing cinema|first=David|last=Cox|date=8 March 2012|publisher=|via=www.theguardian.com}}{{cite news|last1=Cotter|first1=Lucy|title=Hollywood Sets Its Sights On 'Grey Pound'|url=http://news.sky.com/story/1032914/hollywood-sets-its-sights-on-grey-pound|work=news.sky.com|publisher=Sky|date=4 January 2013|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160402103303/http://news.sky.com/story/1032914/hollywood-sets-its-sights-on-grey-pound|archivedate=2 April 2016|location=London}}{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/rise-of-the-silver-haired-screen-older-people-take-largest-share-of-cinema-audiences-8728982.html|title=Rise of the silver-haired screen: Older people take largest share of|date=24 July 2013|website=The Independent}} A similar term exists for LGBT consumers, known as pink money.

Saga, a company whose products and services target the over-50s, estimated the value of the grey pound at £320 billion a year as of 2020.{{Cite web|last=Glenday|first=John|date=28 September 2020|title=Brands warned not to ignore 'grey pound' as over-65s embrace e-commerce|url=https://www.thedrum.com/news/2020/09/28/brands-warned-not-ignore-grey-pound-over-65s-embrace-e-commerce|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2021-02-12|website=The Drum|language=en}} The grey pound is especially important in countries where older people hold disproportionate levels of wealth; in the UK, over-50s hold over three quarters of the financial wealth.{{cite web |author1=Chris Watt |author2=George Moss |title=Consumer trends: the grey pound |url=https://www.ecipartners.com/news-and-insights/insights/the-grey-pound#mycookie |website=ECI Partners |access-date=22 March 2022 |date=22 March 2016}}