 "Photo: Daniela Trujillo/The Daily Texan")
About 70 people piled into an auditorium Tuesday at the South Lamar Alamo Drafthouse to hear market researcher Jon Hockenyos speak about the economic impact of the gay community in Austin.
The Austin Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce hosted the speaker as part of its monthly luncheon series to give an update on the economic situation in Austin and put the “gay dollar” into context.
BusinessWeek recently ranked Austin as the second strongest city economy in the nation. Hockenyos said this doesn’t mean the Austin economy is in good shape, but that it is in relatively good shape compared to the rest of the country.
Hockenyos said he approximated the buying power of the gay community in Austin by analyzing economic information from a sociological and psychological point of view.
“I’ve done some preliminary estimates on the value of the gay dollar here, and frankly it’s bigger than I thought,” Hockenyos said.
In 2006, the latest data available, the buying power of gays and lesbians is estimated at $660 billion and is expected to reach $835 billion by 2011, according to marketresearch.com.
He said Austin’s demographics have a large effect on this value. The University brings in a younger and more migrant population.
“At the end of the day, what we’re really good at is being a place that smart and creative people want to settle down,” Hockenyos said.
Chamber president Chad Peevy said the topic of this event was particularly relevant in the matter of receiving funding from Austin City Council. The more value that City Council members see gays and lesbians bringing to the community, the better the Council will support the Chamber’s cause, Peevy said.
The chamber does not receive funding from the City of Austin, but some minority groups like the Austin Asian-American Chamber of Commerce do.
“We deserve the same treatment as other minority chambers,” Peevey said.
Financial planner Kermit Jones said he was concerned more with the higher cost of living faced by same-sex partners rather than their impact on the economy.
“Honestly, I’m not a believer in the gay dollar,” Jones said. “The issue for most gay people is that things cost more if you have a partner because they don’t get benefits. That’s the angle I’m here for and it’s an unfortunate situation here in Texas.”
Other chamber members at the event said they felt the issue of sexuality in business is important as people start to become aware of political and economic effects of the gay community.
“I think the gay dollar helps to give political credence to those of us who are gay and lesbian who might be overlooked in the community,” said member Mari King. “Our dollar spends just as well.”
King attends the monthly event meetings for the gay and lesbian chamber of commerce and said she brought friends to this one because she felt the buying power of the gay community is relevant information for everyone.
“This is one of our bigger events,” said Julie Nelson, a chamber of commerce board member. “Our monthly luncheons tend to draw 40 to 50 people.”
The chamber of commerce is volunteer-run, and Nelson said that these luncheons help the membership community grow.
“We wanted a speaker to basically give us the economic update on the Austin community. It helps us because we want people to see that we are bringing in valuable speakers,” Nelson said.
