Airborne Lindon, a 55,000 square foot trampoline park and escape room facility in Utah County, Utah, is just one of about a dozen of “family entertainment centers” in the region. 

With nearly a third of the population under the age of 18, Utah County is one of the youngest in the nation, especially for a county of its size. That, for companies like Airborne, is a business opportunity. 

“Utah’s an interesting market because we have the largest family sizes,” said Chris Matern, operations manager of Airborne Lindon. He said the company’s two locations, which are within a 20-minute drive of each other, each pull in seven figures of revenue annually. 

As part of our ongoing series “The Age of Work” about how demographic shifts — specifically the aging U.S. labor force — are shaking up the global economy, “Marketplace” host Kai Ryssdal and ADP chief economist Nela Richardson are looking at lessons from Utah County that can be applied to the nation as a whole. 

What they’ve found is that Utah’s unusually young population, much like counties with high concentrations of retired people, creates both economic opportunities and obstacles. 

In today’s installment, Ryssdal and Richardson speak with Daniel Thomas, regional partner of St. John Properties, a Baltimore-based commercial real estate firm that chose to invest in Utah County because of the opportunity available there. 

“It’s a great place to make money,” he said. But, he cautioned, “Utah County is known for its frugality.”

Click the audio player above to hear the conversation.