Gay, Lesbian Consumers Quite Mainstream

September 14, 2006

Most gay consumers prefer to bank at Royal Bank of Canada, drive a car made by Honda, use a Rogers cellphone and have a Visa credit card, according to a reader survey by Xtra, a national newspaper for gays and lesbians.

The survey, based on roughly 1,000 respondents, is among the few to measure consumer choices among gays and lesbians in Canada, says Dino Bertucci, advertising and marketing manager at Xtra.

A majority of respondents to the survey — 55 per cent — had a university education and more than a quarter had annual household income over $100,000.
About half own their home and 23 per cent own a business.
More than 30 per cent have in excess of $100,000 to invest.
Mr. Bertucci said the vast majority of those surveyed — 84 per cent — had no children, meaning they had more time and money to spend than other consumers.

Over all, the survey found that Xtra readers spend $470-million annually on automobiles and $200-million on fashion and beauty products.
They also have $3.4-billion in mortgages and spend $64-million annually on home electronics. And they drink 1.5 million beers per month.

Mr. Bertucci said Xtra plans a broader survey next year and has invited advertisers to suggest questions for the gay community about products and services.

Xtra publishes across Canada and has about 175,000 readers.