What do the statistics say about the age of Audiophiles and the replacement rate?

@ghdprentice 

I believe that what made high-end audio so very compelling and successful in our day (for decades) was #1: how compelling the music was for all those years.  The music (passion) is what actually produces audiophiles, and future audiophiles.  The music is what drives the high-end audio industry and not the opposite.  I believe that, more than anything, IMOH, bad, non-compelling, poor quality music, over the past 30 years or so, has really hurt the high-end audio industry.  Happy listening.      

In the last TV appearance of political writer Cristopher Hitchens (who was known to be undergoing treatment for cancer) that I saw, he was asked by the interviewer how he was. He replied "Well, I'm dying. But so are you."

@bdp24 Brother Hitch, as we called him, was a dear friend, although neither a melomaniac nor an audiophile. Like Molly Ivins, living larger than life allows but leaving unforgettable shadows. 
That said, the dearth of good new music is sufficient explanation for the decline of interest in reproducing it.

Lots of great, well recorded music being made now. A great aspect of streaming music is that this is easily discoverable. The music is not the issue. 
 

With widespread income disparity ever increasing, the high end industry became drunk on ever increasing prices. That turned off lots of folks. It’s happening to the ski industry now, another passion of mine that I am getting ready to walk away from.

Thank goodness for Schiit and the like for breaking new ground in affordable high end audio.

I’m not surprised that the OP found primarily older men in the gear store.  I am more surprised that he found an actual store that sells gear