Edelman’s ‘100-year life’ report suggests failing to prioritize the over-50s market is costing the economy billions each year.
A new report released today challenges global brands to prepare for the longevity economy, arguing that longer, healthier lives are already changing how people spend, work, and influence others. The research, titled The 100-Year Life is Here, was developed by communications giant Edelman as part of its Longevity Lab initiative, a program developed in collaboration with the UK’s National Innovation Centre for Ageing (NICA) to focus on the 55+ demographic.
While many companies’ brand and marketing strategies remain focused on shorter timelines and younger audiences, the report points out that, by 2050, the global population aged 60 and over is expected to double to 2.1 billion. It argues that brands risk missing growth if they keep treating later life as a period of diminished relevance rather than extended participation.
“Longevity starts with reframing the runway,” Edelman’s global chief brand officer, Jackie Cooper told us. ”Too many organizations are still built around a 30-to-45-year arc of relevance. If your business model quietly assumes people peak at 40, you’re already obsolete. In a longevity era, wisdom isn’t sentimental or intangible – it’s commercially powerful. The organizations that will win are those that design for reinvention and treat experience as an engine of growth for all generations.”
According to the researchers, consumers over 55 control more than half of global spending, yet receive less than 10% of marketing investment as brands prioritize Gen Z on the premise that winning customers early in life secures loyalty for decades. The report contends that this logic weakens in a world where a large share of consumer value and brand commitment can accrue well past midlife, suggesting adults over 55 are roughly 10 percentage points more likely than the average consumer to remain loyal to everyday brands.
“The economic implications are immediate,” said Edelman’s head of strategy, Courtney Miller. “In the US, under-engaging and under-employing people over 50 costs up to $850 billion in GDP annually. In Europe, the “silver economy” represents a €5.7 trillion market growing at roughly 5% per year.”
The 100-Year Life is Here highlights that many companies’ growth models, lifetime value calculations, and media plans are still anchored to the idea that a customer’s economic peak happens around midlife, with value tapering afterward. In a longevity economy, the report’s authors suggest those assumptions will cause brands to miss out on significant revenue, relationship building, and repeat purchasing opportunities.
“I turned 64 recently and was promptly offered a stair lift in the mail,” said Edelman’s global chief brand officer, Jackie Cooper. “That single moment captures the industry’s blind spot. Too many brands equate age with limitation. In reality, the 55+ audience represents one of the longest and most powerful commercial windows in modern history. If your strategy assumes consumers peak at 50, you’ve already written off decades of value.”
To help companies gear up for longevity, The 100-Year Life is Here introduces a new framework, The Longevity Runway, designed to help brands shift from transactional, backward-looking metrics, to human-first, forward-looking measures – building products, services, talent strategies, and media ecosystems that support longer lives and sustained participation.
“Making longevity a competitive advantage starts with shifting the question from what customers are worth to your business to what your business is worth to their lives,” Miller told us. “This isn’t about abandoning traditional metrics like spend or retention, it’s about expanding beyond them. Those measures track transactions. Longevity demands we measure and create value that evolves with people over time. When brands create value that strengthens someone’s life over decades, commercial value follows.”
The full report is available through Edelman’s Longevity Lab.
