Why the American dream has changed for millennials

Once upon a time the American dream was to live in the suburbs in a big house, drive a nice car and commute to the city. Now more millennials dream of moving to the city so they can not have to drive to work or at all. Retailer James Alperin who owned and operated Alperin Jewelers in Pepper Pike, Ohio looks at millennials from a retailers point of view and makes some interesting observations that apply right here in New Jersey.

Today's millennial has a few obstacles in the way of their American dream like health insurance, student loans, the fact that if they want to go out on their own and say open a small business, they must compete with the giant chains that many of them work in and see no way out of.

Where once jewelry stores made their money selling pieces that sold for between 500-2000 dollars, they must now get by on pieces selling for much less, say $50-200. This has caused millennials to move away from the jewelry tastes of the past. It's not that Millennials don't have the American Dream, it's just that they had to come up with a cheaper more practical version to suit these times.

Here's hoping the times change so that they can have the same shot as the generations before them.

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