What have the multicultural communities given us?
The constant inflow of diverse nationalities witnessed in the UK has enriched and made it a ‘Mecca’ for visitors from around the world and a magnet for massive inward investments.
The rich traditions of the UK’s ethnic communities have changed how we eat, dress, enjoy music and consume media. This change has become a massive part of our lives.
Take a look at fashion for example; ethnic garments are in almost all department stores and often, to make fashion statement at red carpet events, celebrities are spotted in pieces such as the traditional galbiya or sari.
The rapid increase in ethnic Millennials and their love for gadgets has propelled the ethnic community to embrace social media, in particular mobile apps such as WhatsApp, Viber, Tango, Twitter and Instagram.
The availability of 25,000 restaurants serving cuisine from over 45 countries has forever changed the way we eat. The growth of ready to eat meals in UK supermarkets is a testament to the astounding influence on the UK eating habits. In fact the most popular snack in the UK is the humbling Samosas (which sell more than Walkers Crisps!), Chinese Stir Fry, Tex Mex, Hummus and Shawerma.
The popularity of foreign beauty and hair care is on the rise within shops and salons. There is now a heavy demand for authentic beauty and hair treatments made with essential oils and local formulas, such as Dead Sea products and Moroccan and Argon oil.
When wandering the streets of London you can’t escape the plethora of exotic languages spoken and accents heard (300 to be precise).
I would like to briefly highlight 14 examples of how multicultural people enriched the UK;
- Open till late: 20 odd years ago, no shop would remain open beyond 6pm but today. Thanks to the corner shop concept, even Sainsbury and Tesco are competing for the latest opening hours.
- Bulk buying: Ethnic households entertain a lot and in big numbers, so naturally they buy food products in bulk, hence one such shopper is the equivalent to 3 average UK shoppers.
- Entrepreneurship: the majority of Asians, Arabs & Chinese migrants set up their own business in the UK and therefore 35% of SME.
- Food and fusion: ethnic food influence has revolutionised the UK cuisine and made much more interesting and exciting
- Fashion and clothing: A fascination with fashion and fine stitching has led ethnic fashion to dominate the ethnic shopping streets and the major department stores all over the UK.
- Technology and social media: 52% of the multicultural population are under the age of 14 years which explains their strong affinity and early adoption of the latest tech products, game consoles, mobile handsets and use social media platforms such as WhatsApp, Viber, Tango and Facebook has massive ethnic take-up. A new bread of these entrepreneurs are setting up in the tech roundabout n London and developing businesses that employ more staff than the banking industry and generating billions in revenue.
- Music: Undoubtedly the greatest influences in today’s music scenes are Black singers and rappers. The MOBO award has been celebrating black music influence and contribution to UK music arena for the past 20 years.
- Sport and football: the majority of footballers and sports icons are of an ethnic background.
- Health & well-being: Chinese herbals clinics, Yoga and Ayurvedic treatment centres are springing all over the UK due mainly to Chinese and Asian practitioners.
- Property investments: There has been billions of Pounds investments in the UK real estate mainly by ethnic people which has resulted in increasing of property values, in particular in London.
- Purchasing luxury brands: Multicultural people love branded goods and would buy products and brands that stand for quality. A visit to any branded shop will demonstrate, especially with regards to the Chinese, Arab and Russian UK populations, love for quality, luxury brands. In fact, combined, they have a buying power of £300 million. Arabs in particular are likely to spend in excess of £150,000 on tailor made prestige cars.
- Long distance phone calls: Calling back home and spending hours on the phone daily and weekly is a distinctive Multicultural trait. This explains the reason behind the growth of the 3 largest multicultural telecom brands (Lebara, Lyca & Vectone) to rival the major telecom companies like BT & Talk Talk.
- Religious institutions: Mosques and Temples are witnessing a boom with regular full attendances everywhere. The reduction in alcohol related crimes have been attributed in a recent survey to more faithful and conservative society.
- Skilled labour: The UK skills shortage a decade ago has disappeared thanks to the arrival of hard working Eastern European skilled labour force, who proved to be crucial for the UK building and service sectors boom. The Europeans have been instrumental in powering up the UK engine for success and generated an economic surplus that is unmatched by any other economy around the world
With all this influence someone may ask why ethnic people are invisible on programming on the TV screens and in advertising.
Why broadcasters such the BBC and the commercial stations fail to develop content that appeals to this growing audience.
Are ad agencies and their clients missing out on a lucrative opportunity to tap into this rich consumer segment to increase their sales and market-share.
Marketing directors are always telling us they are looking for innovation and new markets to explore! Perhaps brands need specialist advice from agencies with deep insights of these audiences and can deliver success for them.
