54.

That’s the magic number, or age, when Gen Zers hope to retire, according to Empower research on Financial Happiness — the earliest goalpost of any generation. The average retirement savings for those age 18-26 is $78,300.

Succession planning may be one avenue to reach it. About half of small businesses (from proprietorships to companies with up to 500 employees) worth $10 trillion* are owned by people over 50 — and many are selling in order to retire. Currently, 64% of people buying up businesses are Millennials or younger.

— The Editors 

🎁 400,000 seasonal jobs: Retailers are hiring 400,000* people for the holidays with Target looking to fill 100,000 positions starting between $15 and $24 per hour. U.S. employers added 254,000* jobs in September, including in the restaurant, healthcare, construction, and government sectors. It was the largest month-over-month increase since March, on the heels of the Federal Reserve’s half-percentage point cut in interest rates. The unemployment rate also ticked down to 4.1%.

🏡 800 rentals: Costco is making a big ware-“house” move, developing 800* rental apartments above its retail space in Los Angeles. Harvard research shows about 22.4 million renter households spend more than 30%* of their income on housing. While buyers are starting to see some relief,* roughly half of Americans (48%) feel priced out of home ownership according to an Empower study.

 💰 68 million beneficiaries: Social Security’s 2025 cost-of-living adjustment came in at 2.5%,* shrinking from last year’s 3.2% bump. An average beneficiary will see their monthly payment rise by $50 in January to $1,957. According to AARP research, 83% of older adults said that a COLA of less than 3% wouldn’t be enough to offset rising prices. Read more on the update on The Currency.

 📦 $20,000 prize: Amazon is introducing a new competition show where entrepreneurs have 90* seconds to pitch their product to a panel of celebrity business owners and executives. Winners of each episode will pocket a $20,000 cash prize plus the opportunity to launch their lines with prime placement on Amazon’s new “Buy It Now” online store. With 37.6% of e-commerce sales, Amazon boasts the highest market share among e-commerce companies. 

741

NBA champion Jaylen Brown is taking a bold step: The all-star is launching his own performance sneaker brand, 741, after turning down a reported $50 million* in endorsement deals from other companies.

Brown’s $304 million* NBA contract was one of the largest ever. This latest play positions the Celtics guard as a power forward in the $159 billion business of sports, and in the league of celebrities going into business for themselves.

741 shoes are priced at $200 for men's sizes and $70 for big kids, roughly 40% less than competitors according to Brown.

$21.1 billion

The influencer marketing industry is growing at breakneck speed to $21.1 billion in 2023, more than doubling from $10.29 billion in 2021 — and 36% of brands say influencer content outperforms branded content. Consider cosmetics brand Charlotte Tilbury: $412* million of its $586 million global impact in the first half of 2024 was generated by influencers.
 

• 49% of consumers make regular purchases based on recommendations from influencers
• 2 in 3 (66%) Millennials and Gen Zers and more than 1 in 4 (27%) Gen Xers and Baby Boomers follow influencers
• Nearly half of consumers (47%) care about the authenticity of an influencer
• Up to 69% of consumers trust influencer recommendations

The average American spends nearly two and a half hours a day "Dreamscrolling,” with more than half (56%) leaving windows open or saving dream purchases in shopping carts. Influencers, it seems, are getting many consumers to take the next step and complete those purchases.

53%  

It’s open enrollment season, and over half of Americans (53%) report that cost is the primary driver for choosing benefits, with 35% of Millennials (27% of people overall) saying they enroll in the least expensive option regardless of what the plans offer, according to Empower research.

Some 41% say they would have made different benefit elections if they had a better understanding of the options. Less than half of younger generations know where to find the information and details needed to make decisions about their benefits (44% of Gen Zers, 50% of Millennials). Fewer than 2 in 5 (38%) Americans feel that the open enrollment process is easy and user-friendly, and 37% admit to feeling overwhelmed when it comes to selecting benefits.

Beyond healthcare (70%), dental (53%), and vision plans (45%), Americans rank access to retirement plans (45%) and financial advice (24% overall, 42% Gen Z) among the most important employer benefits.

Golden opportunity: Investing in art can create dazzling potential for some investors, and certain billionaires count themselves among this collector crowd. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos once paid $53 million for a single piece, and Microsoft’s Bill Gates has amassed a collection of art and artifacts valued around $127 million.