Halifax is one of the cities in the country that should benefit from the echo, as its purchasing power increases. Halifax is the regional magnet for young people in the East. Many boomers stayed here after university and had children - the echo kids. Mr. Foot, who was in Halifax last week to speak to the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators conference, said understanding population patterns can be valuable to governments. You can use this way of thinking to do significant planning, whether it's for the justice system, schools, day care, home care.
Big business can also learn a thing or two but, as with politicians, there are constraints.
Mr. Foot said Levi Strauss lost market share because it didn't fast-track a line of jeans with elasticized waistbands for aging boomers. At the other end of the age spectrum, retail concepts such as Babies R Us and Baby Gap have arrived at a time of another dip in births. We think one year at a time. Most of the senior executives are on an annual bonus plan, so they keep going one year at a time. He suggests executives could be compensated through a formula that took into account company performance over several years, thus emphasizing the importance of long-term planning.