Bluegrass consumers have a higher interest than most in the music they enjoy and are more likely to frequent the places that sell recorded product.  Where did we go to purchase music last year?

PLACE                                  BLUEGRASS CONSUMERS*         

Discount Stores                      3.7 million        53% more likely

Department Stores                  3.4 million        38% more likely

Record Stores                         2.3 million        38% more likely

Audio/Video Stores                  2.2 million        10% more likely

Bookstores                             1.9 million        105% more likely

Record/CD Club                      1.5 million        349% more likely

By Mail/Phone                        1.1 million        10% more likely

And lest we think we haven’t converted to downloading or using digital distribution, 4.2 million or 23% of us utilized iTunes and 3.2 million or 17% used Real Player in 2009.

* Source: Simmons Market Research 2009, Numbers of U.S. adults 18+ who indicated bluegrass music among the genres they “like most” or bought in the past 12 months. The “more likely” stats are in comparison to the entire U.S. adult population.

IBMA subscribes to Simmons to help members gain a more thorough understanding of the bluegrass consumer, their demographics, attitudes, media usage and purchasing habits.  For more information contact Jess Norburg at IBMA (jess@ibma.org or 615-256-3222)