ABSTRACT
This chapter surveys a sea change in society that occurred during the last several decades of the twentieth century as industrial capitalism turned to a model of “post-Fordism.” Key topics include the neoliberal political economy of deregulation and privatization, the dematerialization of the economy, and the accompanying emphasis on the symbolic. With this context in place, the authors examine how marketers entered into a project of “demassification,” paying attention to narrower consumer lifestyles and lifecycles. Case studies on “yuppies” and “Gen X” are presented to illustrate the interests of marketers during the late twentieth century, but also some of the structural societal changes.
