With economic recovery still slow to come, merchants are wondering whether to bet on older Baby Boomers, savvy Generation Xers, or young but fickle Millennials to pull retail out of recession mode.

Currently, Generation Yers (also known as Millenials) and Gen Xers are significantly more likely than older consumers to say they love or enjoy clothes shopping, according to the Cotton Incorporated Lifestyle Monitor™ survey. Among Millennials, who were born roughly between 1978 and 2000, 35% of males and 73% of females truly enjoy shopping. Among Gen Xers (who were born between 1965 and 1978), 37% of males and 61% of females feel similarly, compared to only 26% of male and 51% of female Boomers, who were born between 1946 and1964.

According to the NPD Survey, apparel spending by males ages 18-34 decreased 8.4% from 2008 to 2009, from $20.9 million to $19.1 million. But they still spent more than Boomer men, whose spending decreased 4.1%, from $16.5 million to $15.8 million.

"Retailers understand that they have to alter the way they market to each generation, because everyone responds differently." - Dan Butler, NRF

Among women, though, the NPD survey shows apparel spending by Boomers decreased more: down 9%, from $35,182,864 to $32,016,814. Among women ages 18-34, spending only declined 5.5%, from $37,270,839 to $35,206,048.

The National Retail Federation's Dan Butler, vice-president of merchandising and retail operations, says generally, most retailers want to appeal to a broader base of customer, not one generation over the other.

"I think a commonly held belief now is consumers have changed across the board and are more guarded in how they spend," Butler says. "The relationship between value and price is more than before, and will extend into the future. They spend, but they will do more homework to see if it's a good deal or good price."

No matter their age or gender, about one-fourth of consumers plan on purchasing more apparel in the coming month, according to the Monitor survey. And Millennial shoppers are more likely to make an impulse purchase (31% of males, 44% of females) compared to Boomers (16% of males and 33% of females).

Kit Yarrow, along with USA Today's Jayne O'Donnell, co-wrote Gen Buy: How Tweens, Teens and Twenty-Somethings are Revolutionizing Retail. She says the recession left Boomers with a more cautious attitude toward spending that is not shared by Gen Yers.

"I'm not making them out to be materialistic, but Gen Y has a mentality about consumption that other generations have moved past or transformed," Yarrow says. "Also, they're moving into their big spending era. In any lifespan, those years from 25-to-40 are the biggest time of spending, because that's generally when you're buying a home and having kids."

Currently, Gen Xers are 30 to 45 years old, and the Monitor finds they are more likely to be "very or somewhat optimistic" about their own personal financial situation: 62% of males and 54% of females say so, compared to 47% of Boomer males and 51% of Boomer females.

And for now, Millennials are buying apparel. Though every age group plans to buy clothes in the coming months, the Monitor survey shows that among males, 19% of Millennials plan to purchase more clothing for themselves this year, compared to only 9% of male Gen Xers. Twenty-seven percent of female Millennials also expect to buy more apparel this year, versus 15% of Gen X and 8% of Boomer females.

Perhaps savvy manufacturers and retailers could help turn that around. Lori Bitter, president of Continuum Crew, a think tank and communications firm focused on the mature consumer, says Boomers have been relatively stable spenders during the recession, and outspend other generations by an estimated $400 billion each year on consumer goods and services.

"The reality is that Boomers are very savvy consumers, and they favor retailers who actually understand who they are and provide relevant products," she says. Bitter says Boomer women are willing to spend more to get what they want, "but frequently don�t find what they are looking for in terms of fit, shopping experience or trend. These are women from 45-59 years old. Imagine the frustration for the woman 60-plus."

Male Gen Y and Gen X shoppers spend significantly more on apparel each month ($60 and $62, respectively), than do male Boomers ($43). Gen X females spent the least ($57) among all women, compared to $64 spent by Millennials and $61 spent by Boomers, according to the Monitor survey.

Most Boomers buy the majority of their apparel from mass merchants (30%), according to Monitor data, followed by chain and department stores (12%) and specialty stores (7%). Among Gen Xers, 27% rely on mass merchants, followed by chain stores (21%), department stores (14%) and specialty stores (12%). Gen Yers buy most of their clothing from specialty stores (24%), as well as from chain and mass merchants (20% each), and department stores (14%).

Butler says, to a certain extent, retailers do not have the same outlook for all generations.

"Retailers understand that they have to alter the way they market to each generation, because everyone responds differently," he adds.

Millennials were the first generation to grow up with technology. As such, Yarrow says, "You can't rely on what worked in the past, because Gen Y behaves differently with technology than do other generations."

At the same time, Bitter says more Boomer women retained their jobs than Boomer men during the economic downturn. She says most will delay retirement, and many say that they never plan to retire.

"This first generation of highly educated, motivated women have finally attained job and economic status, and they aren�t going anywhere soon," Bitter says. "The retailers who learn to engage Boomers and appeal to their needs will emerge as the winners in this economy."

In this unsteady economy, retailers may have to rely on all three generations for a recovery that will last.