Assignment
The 'no brow' consumer Marketers spend a lot of time trying to understand how consumers' age, income and lifestyle affect their choice of brands. Now research suggests brand owners could have a new challenge on their hands: a type of consumer who does not fit the traditional socioeconomic or demographic criteria. This consumer has been dubbed 'no-brow'. No-brow is not a youth trend or confined to city-dwelling trendiest. But it is an attitude towards brands and consumerism that prevails among those traditionally categorized as BC1 - so-called 'middle Englanders' - who make up the UK population's largest group by disposable income. 'Until very recently it was easy for a brand-owner to reach middle England. All you needed was the right proposition, the right price and appropriate distribution,' says Pears McCabe, planning director of brand design consultancy Fitch: London. 'But everything's changed. Current consumer behavior is challenging received wisdom and marketing convention.'
In an attempt to understand what is happening, Fitch undertook quantitative analysis of data from sources including Mintel, Verdict Research and TGI, and qualitative research among couples aged between 25 and 40 in Greater Manchester and Watford. The findings suggest that BC1 consumers feel increasingly frustrated with the homogeneous nature of the mass market, and are losing their loyalty to traditional brands. As a result, they are engaged by so-called up market or high-brow brands but are just as willing to buy cheaper, low-brow brands. They regularly mix and match a wide variety of high- and low-status brands to satisfy their preoccupations with individualism and self-expression.
One reason for the rise of the 'no brow' is the blurring of the line between traditional definitions of 'mass market' and 'premium'. This has been driven by a number of mass market brands assuming a premium positioning, such as Tesco with the launch of its Tesco Finest range and the so-called 'democratization' of premium, luxury brands such as Hackett, the British men's wear label, Ralph Lauren and Burberry, which are now seen by ordinary consumers as attainable. All this leaves the brand owner struggling to define a target market and battling against declining consumer loyalty as consumers buy into a broader, more eclectic mix of high- and low-brow brands, Fitch's findings suggest, increasingly, the no-brow consumer does not want to buy something that has already been packaged.
This extends beyond fashion and into interiors, food and even travel, where a growing number of people fly budget airlines but check into five-star hotels at their destination. IKEA, Nissan and John Lewis, the department store chain, are among brands that, either deliberately or otherwise, are close to the no-brow mindset. Fitch's research shows that no-brow consumers value them for providing flexibility instead of a bespoke product or service; for providing both emotional and rational reasons to buy; and for brand values such as consistency, authenticity and integrity. Nokia, Debenhams and Orange, meanwhile, are brands that would benefit from more closely tapping into no-brow attitudes, Mr McCabe believes: 'Those rolling out standard formats everywhere should wake up to the fact that no-brows are growing tired of that. They don't want standardization, they want distinctiveness. But while they want distinctiveness, they don't want to be overtly conspicuous.'
Question
1 What is meant by 'no brow' consumers?
2 What relevance does this approach have to traditional market segmentation approaches?
3 Can you identify business implications of this trend?
The response should include a reference list. Double-space, using Times New Roman 12 pnt font, one-inch margins, and APA style of writing and citations.