Need to Know

Coinciding with our new macrotrend Uncoupled Living, our latest Tribe gets to know the people choosing to embrace singledom, polyamory and platonic love over traditional romantic relationships.

In this Tribe we meet Emily, Boris and Scarlett, who live in a warehouse in North London and identify as a polycule, a system of interconnected polyamorous relationships they describe as familial. From his studio apartment in Seoul, tribe member Jang advocates that brands should better cater for honjok, a South Korean term for single people who willingly live, and undertake activities, alone.

Meanwhile, in Ottawa, Canada, law professors Natasha and Lynda are challenging accepted ideals around parenting, raising their child Elaan as platonic, but highly compatible, friends, provoking the question: Why must romance between parents be considered necessary in order to raise a child?

In response, brands must rethink their marketing, products and services to accommodate the myriad lifestyles of the uncoupled. For more on the mindsets, motivations and expectations of this tribe, read The Uncoupled.

In our first Modest Wear Market, launched at the beginning of 2017, we discussed the rise of Muslim influencers and the modest wear brand collaborations that offered an exciting opportunity for brands and retailers.

Now, two years later, our Modest Wear Market 2019 explores how high street fashion brands such as Marks & Spencer and H&M, and emerging streetwear and sports labels like Under-Râpt and Seek Refuge are adding modest silhouettes into their collections to provide a balance between self-expression and considerate dressing for young, fashion-conscious Muslims.

‘Start-up modest fashion brands have been making inroads around the world, particularly for hijabs, gaining traction through the use of social media to spread the word [while] modest athletic apparel is a notably trendy segment,’ says Haroon Latif, director of strategic insights at DinarStandard.

With the global modest wear market set to be worth £294bn ($373bn, €325bn) by 2022, fashion and retail brands are encouraged to explore the current state of the market.

In January, we took a closer look at the new ways Generation Z are using Instagram. From finstas to meme therapy, the image and video sharing platform is becoming a space to learn, debate, support and forge new friendships.

One example is flop accounts. Run by teen collectives, these profiles highlight fails surrounding issues that their generation cares about such as gun control and LGBT+ rights, providing a platform to be social and learn simultaneously.

Realness is also driving new use patterns on Instagram, with young teens increasingly creating multiple personal accounts known as rinstas (real Instagram) or finstas (fake or fun Instagram) where a second page, usually set to private, is created with content they feel shouldn’t be shared on their default. Rinsta posts, for example, vary from acne diaries to drunken pictures and insider jokes, signalling a push back to the pressure younger generations feel to portray a perfect, curated lifestyle.

Amid Generation Z’s Anxiety Rebellion, they are using Instagram to playfully and creatively communicate on a deeper level – often with total strangers – and away from the judgement of people and brands that don’t understand them.