Reading in the Room

Library tote bags (Chron photo)

Marketers have struggled to figure out how to appeal to older members of Gen Z, aka twenty-somethings, but this trend comes as a surprise. Emily Hoeven writes: [bold added]

It’s no secret that young people in San Francisco don’t frequent bars and nightclubs the way they once did.

This has left many perplexed. If the city’s dwindling population of 20-somethings isn’t drinking and dancing, what are they doing?

This 20-something has spent much of her time this summer at the San Francisco Public Library. And based on my observations, plenty of other young adults have, too.

No, we aren’t geeks. The library is cool.

To start, it’s a free third space — a perk that cannot be overstated in this ridiculously expensive city.

I recently visited the Chinatown library shortly before it closed at 8 p.m. There was barely an empty seat in the house. And it was impossible not to notice the sizable number of young adults.

Is it any surprise we’d forgo a moody bar when a glass of wine can set you back $20 these days?

Thousands have earned the library tote bags that are given to those who complete 20 hours of reading (books) over the summer. Given enough time, everything passé, even reading books, will become cool again.