Originally Posted by: maggiorI wonder what percentage of those purchases are by middle aged men looking to relive the glory days of the 70's and 80's :-).

Here's to the halcyon glory days!! :D

A search got these hits. Not too many firm numbers but the impact of middle-aged men is clear.

"Middle-aged men spark guitar revival", http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-205624/Middle-aged-men-spark-guitar-revival.html This from the U.K., "Once frequented almost exclusively by professional members of the rock and pop fraternity, the store now sells mainly to amateurs and enthusiasts such as businessmen, doctors, dentists and lawyers. Many are prepared to spend hundreds - if not thousands - of pounds on top-of-the-range instruments...The 30-pluses are discovering they have some disposable income and are reliving their childhood dreams..."

And this from a 2008 post on the Boomer Guitar blog, http://www.guitarboomer.com/2008/01/aging-rocker-demographic-and-its-impact.html
"I was discussing my perception that aging rockers must be having an impact on guitar sales worldwide with another blogger at World of Baby Boomer’s fudge. So, I did a quick search on Google and quickly came upon articles showing that a large number of aging rockers are either picking the guitar back up or learning it for the first time as a cure for the midlife crisis."

The author posted the links below. They are now old articles but all seem to point to a trend -- boomers are pushing up guitar sales numbers and, perhaps, prices as well.

CEOs That Rock – Wall Street Journal - Beer-soaked gigs by night, LBOs by day. Our reporter on high-powered boomers who are still chasing their teenage rock-star fantasies, only with much nicer guitars. http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB115394172219418136-CaXUzU5YW9NAwMN3mG6mnbb0Zqs_20070728.html?mod=tff_main_tff_top

UK Guitar Sales Top 100m - miPRO http://www.mi-pro.co.uk/news/read/uk-guitar-sales-top-100m

Guitar sales jam despite music woes – USA Today http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/money/media/columnist/lieberman/2002-12-16-music_x.htm A story about Martin's sales.

Guitar boom strikes a chord as all types get in on the axe – Sydney Morning Herald http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/guitar-boom-strikes-a-chord-as-all-types-get-in-on-the-axe/2006/09/09/1157222379590.html Aussie sales...

Now, Baby Boomers Are Digging Guitars as Pricey Collectibles – The New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/24/arts/design/24ANTI.html?_r=0