Millennials to Leverage Technology in Thanksgiving Planning, Prep

For the Millennial generation, the days of kicking back in front of the television at your parents' house while mom prepares Thanksgiving dinner are quickly coming to a close, as new research from dunnhumby shows that more Millennials are planning to host the Turkey Day feast themselves than ever before.

In fact, 59 percent of those 25 to 34 will host Thanksgiving this year, and – in fine Millennial fashion – technology will be incorporated into the planning process.

Some 21 percent of this age group will buy groceries for their holiday meal using a food delivery app – Instacart, Shipt and Google Express, to name a few – while 16 percent will use a delivery service like Peapod, FreshDirect, AmazonFresh and Blue Apron.

Compare these numbers to those in the 55-plus generation, none of whom reported using either of these kinds of services, dunnhumby found.

Not only are Millennials leveraging technology to shop, they're also scouring digital channels for cooking ideas and recipes. Almost half (48 percent) will use social media sites like Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook – miles above the 27 percent national average – while recipe apps and food blogs will also be popular resources (31 percent versus 16 percent of all Americans and 27 percent versus just 13 percent of all Americans, respectively).

“We are in the midst of a generational and attitudinal shift throughout the United States where technology has given rise to the emergence of the new connected customer – not just in regards to Thanksgiving dinner, but for all retail and grocery shopping,” said Andy Hill, managing director North America, dunnhumby.

So how do retailers keep up?

“It’s absolutely vital … to understand both offline and online behavior through data and customer science in order to create a complete picture of consumer behavior and preferences," added Hill, "including how they shop, source their information and share experiences with friends and family.”