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Sunday Best: 22 June 2009

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Here is a round up of some of the most interesting consumer news…

From the UK this week…

For the first time, young women are more likely to be in debt than men
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/personal-view/5587607/Female-bankrupts-girls-lose-the-blues-in-the-red.html

UK households have £200 more to spend each month than this time last year… but are saving their extra cash
http://www.warc.com/News/TopNews.asp?ID=25299

Value range boosts Waitrose
Waitrose’s first value range, which it introduced in March, has seen sales running well ahead of the group’s own projections
http://link.ft.com/r/73UJGG/O4A9H/IQ08P/P5KD0/XSKCI/YT/t

New grads facing a tough time…
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/jun/21/graduate-careers-employment-market

Credit crunch and lack of jobs mean young people are now less positive about going to university…
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/education/article6544590.ece

House prices fall for first time in four months
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/banking_and_finance/article6549935.ece

One third of consumers believe that their household finances deteriorated in the past month…
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/recession/5570752/Household-finances-still-worsening.html

Telegraph visits 5 cities to see how the recession is effecting them
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/recession/uk-recession-telegraph-tour/

Recession threatens to create a beaten generation…
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/columnists/article6513328.ece

And finally… Top Gear reveal the identity of the Stig…
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8111588.stm

Follow us on for more regular updates from the Real World Insight team.

Finally, some stories from the EMEA Sunday Best…

Google has bowed to demands in Germany to do more to protect people’s privacy ahead of the launch of its Street View
http://www.thelocal.de/sci-tech/20090617-20021.html

Europe bank chief warns on debt
Governments that have borrowed heavily to fight the economic crisis should not accumulate any more debt, the president of the European Central Bank has said.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8111662.stm

Google helps net Dutch ‘muggers’
Police in the Netherlands have arrested two men after a boy they are alleged to have mugged saw a picture of them on Google’s internet map service.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8110363.stm

It seems as though one of the golden audiences for many marketers and their brands – the coveted 18-24 market – is in ever-increasing danger of becoming a generation of disaffected youth. New graduates are staring a barren jobs market in the face, whilst those finishing their A-levels are questioning the previously well-beaten path straight to university.
Whilst brands will still look to these consumers, will they suffer if they do not adjust for the changing fortunes their audience is facing? Or should brands be looking to give something back in these times of recession?

Sunday Best: 15 June 2009

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Here is a round up the most interesting consumer news…

From the UK this week…

Downturn to be less severe than feared, says CBI
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/economics/article6499330.ece

Are downloads really killing the music industry? Or is it something else?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2009/jun/09/games-dvd-music-downloads-piracy

A house which failed to sell despite starring on Grand Designs is to be given away on Twitter
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/twitter/5506535/Grand-Designs-house-given-away-on-Twitter.html

Brits cutting back on insurance in recession
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Business/Cutting-Back-On-Insurance-In-Recession-Leaves-Britons-At-Risk-Warns-Association-Of-British-Insurers/Article/200906215298830?f=rss

Mobile phone directory to launch
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/working_lunch/8091621.stm

‘The recession is over’ some claimed this week. Is it?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/poll/2009/jun/12/green-shoots-economic-recovery-recession

British users most likely to flag offensive material, says YouTube
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/the_web/article6423094.ece

Inflexible delivery contributes to slowing growth of online spending
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/retailing/article6498647.ece

The number of workers foregoing their holiday allowance in return for a boost in their salary has almost doubled amid the recession.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/5535065/Number-of-workers-giving-up-holidays-for-more-pay-doubles.html

Citizens Advice sees ‘enormous’ rise in debt problems
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/consumertips/5493125/Citizens-Advice-sees-enormous-rise-in-debt-problems.html

Follow us on for more regular updates from the Real World Insight team.

And spreading our attention across EMEA…

Most of the world’s big economies are close to emerging from recession
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/a9a1c07a-541d-11de-a58d-00144feabdc0.html

Eurozone production sees a record fall
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8097056.stm

EU plans tougher cybercrime laws
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/10a407b6-5913-11de-80b3-00144feabdc0.html

Online retail – buoyed originally by the dual ‘benefits’ of saving money and the idea of shopping in your pyjamas – was heralded as being a potential high street killer. But is online shopping now so hindered by the inflexible delivery options to make it no longer worth consumers there while? Or do things like problems with trust of online security and the ‘try before you buy mentality’ mean that real-life shopping will always retain its position in consumers’ hearts?
Whilst the EU is looking to further punish those involved with online fraud and cybercrime, can brands do anything to overcome these issues?

Sunday Best: 1 June 2009

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Here’s a round up of this week’s most interesting consumer news…

‘Buy now, pay later’ back in fashion as hire-purchase borrowing soars by 24%
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1187871/Buy-pay-later-fashion-hire-purchase-borrowing-soars-24.html

As the ‘sandwich generation’ juggles the demands of children and elderly parents, should more firms be aiming to appear on the Top Employers for Working Families list?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2009/may/30/work-life-balance-long-term-care

When not cutting prices becomes a luxury
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/c321375a-4aff-11de-87c2-00144feabdc0.html

Morrisons leads supermarket growth
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/may/27/morrisons-growth

Cinema audiences have jumped this year, as consumers flock to watch comedies and teenage fare to escape the recession
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/film-news/5388334/Cinema-audiences-boom-as-people-look-to-escape-recession.html

With the rise of successful British films like Slumdog Millionaire and 3D films like Bolt, is the growing quality of cinema making trips to the big screen more appealing?
Or is it just a result of consumers being forced to forgo more expensive nights out in bars and clubs? Or, as The Telegraph states, are people are looking to comedies or animated films to escape the doom and gloom of the recession?

Perhaps other brands could look into employing this concept of escapism to offer something new to consumers through the ongoing credit crunch… think Mars Balls, perhaps?

Follow us on for more regular updates from the Real World Insight team.

Sunday Best: 26 May 2009

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Here’s a round up of this week’s most interesting consumer news…..

YouGov study finds struggling companies turning to eBay to raise funds
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/may/25/online-shopping-recession

Brits struggling to save while economy slumps
http://tinyurl.com/oteyu2

Inflation slows even further to its lowest rate since 1939
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/inflation-slows-even-further-to-its-lowest-rate-since-1939-1687796.html

Hectic lifestyles are turning the middle classes into a fast food nation
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1185100/Middle-classes-hooked-takeaways-hectic-lifestyles-turn-Britain-fast-food-nation.html

UK retail sales bounce in April
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/36446cfe-45f4-11de-803f-00144feabdc0.html

Graduates and school leavers face jobs crunch
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/may/26/employers-slash-graduate-recruitment-schemes

Sales of smaller cars take off under scrappage scheme
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/may/24/car-scrappage-scheme

Little luxuries console consumers
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/fc5a9eda-46ea-11de-923e-00144feabdc0.html

This last story suggests that the decline in conspicuous consumption appears to be driven by three factors in the current economic climate:

  • firstly, that consumers are being forced to tighten their belts (as well as choosing to cut back elsewhere);
  • secondly, that brands don’t have the same control over pricing as they used to;
  • and thirdly, that brands now have to contend with the idea of ‘everyday luxuries’ in a marketplace no longer split down such clear premium/value lines.

Once we are out of the recession which factor, if any, will become the main driver? Or will things just return to how they were prior to the credit crunch?

Follow us on for more regular updates from the Real World Insight team.

Sunday Best: 18 May 2009

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A round-up of this week’s consumer news….

Nearly twice as many Brits are considering a camping holiday compared with last year
http://tr.im/lDNt

M&S to sell 2m items for 1p
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2009/may/14/marks-and-spencer-penny-bazaar

Shoppers of the future will ‘pick’ fruit from supermarket shelves
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/5330690/Shoppers-of-the-future-will-pick-fruit-from-supermarket-shelves.html

Free–range is still important to consumers
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/may/15/free-range-egg-sales-increase

Google rival, Wolfram Alpha to change the way people use online data
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8052798.stm

Twitter breaks its social network: how quickly can it fix it?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2009/may/13/twitter

Older workers hit hardest by unemployment crisis
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/recession/5330496/Older-workers-hit-hardest-by-unemployment-crisis.html

The top ten web brands accounted for 45% of all time spent online
http://www.brandrepublic.com/News/905544/Major-websites-grow-share-Britons-internet-time/

UK unemployment now at 2.22m (up 244k in Q1 of 2009)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8046128.stm

Follow us on for more regular updates from the Real World Insight team.