How the Hipster Ethic Is Revitalizing the American Economy

Our friend Tyler Castle explains.

On the Values and Capitalism blog:

Let me be clear. I am no advocate of hipster culture as it is often realized in American society today. At its worst, it is contrarian for the mere sake of being contrarian, which is, of course, obnoxious. But at the same time, there are positive, even praiseworthy aspects of “hipsterism”—namely, a sincere appreciation for originality.

I am often called a hipster myself because I’d rather go to a local breakfast joint than IHOP. Or because I prefer a locally brewed IPA to Bud Light. Well, it turns out I’m not the only one—and this is good news for America.

As Tim Wu of The New Yorker reports, “American craft breweries collectively now sell more than 16.1 million barrels of beer annually, outpacing, for the first time, Budweiser.”  This may not be all that surprising—we are talking about all American craft breweries after all. But consider this: in 1988 Budweiser sold almost 50 million barrels, completely dominating the market. Acutely aware of this decline, it’s no wonder Budweiser is actively trying to set itself apart from these craft brews.

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