Report: Singles 20-35

Top Brands

What are your favourite food brands and why?

The clear winner is Heinz; many respondents like the brands’ beans, sauce or spaghetti. Second come Dairy Milk, Pizza Hut and Marks & Spencer. Other mentioned brands are McDonald’s, Linda McCartney, Galaxy, Hellmann’s and HP.

Do you buy more own label or branded goods?

Having only a small budget, the majority of young singles buy own label food products because they are cheaper. Nevertheless, some respondents do fork out for branded goods as they consider them to be of better quality.

What are the cool brands at the moment?

Top electronic brands are Sony and Apple for this age group. Respondents like the new products from Apple, including the iPods and Sony for its continuous quality and innovation. Clothing brands that get the thumbs up include high street brands Topshop, H&M and even Primark.

Which brands won’t you buy and why?

Companies with poor employment records and links with sweatshop workers are avoided, including Gap, Nike, Tesco and Coca Cola. Also brands with a poor reliability rate are shunned, especially for electrical products and these include Bush and Alba.

Finance

Who do you bank with and why? (Have you been with them a long time? Why did you switch?)

The respondents name many different banks, so there is no leading company to spot. Reasons for their choice are often good rates on overdrafts and their parents’ recommendations.

How do you conduct your banking? Do you do it online or in store or by telephone? Do you use a mix of those?

Although most respondents use the Internet frequently, many are afraid of banking online because of security reasons. They rather conduct their banking in store or by telephone.

Do you have savings and what are they for? / What type of savings account do you have and why?

Only few have savings, either to get on the property ladder or to buy a car. Some respondents also save for holidays or emergencies. The majority, however, do rather have debts than savings.

Do you have a high level of debt?

Several thousand pounds of debt are quite common in this age group as many have just finished studying and now have to pay off their student loans. Additionally, some have to struggle with overdrafts as well.

Do you own or rent your home? Are you able to get on the property ladder? Why?/why not?

Most respondents rent their homes. Although the majority want to get on the property ladder, they have huge difficulties raising enough money to do so. Another reason for not buying property yet is the wish to travel for some time before settling down.

Media & Technology

Do you have a computer at home? What do you use it for?

The overwhelming majority of the respondents do have a computer at home. Mostly, they use it for college work, emailing, researching and shopping online or playing games.

What are your favourite websites and why?

Shopping-wise, Amazon comes out top; their low prices for books and CDs appeal to many respondents. Information-wise, Wikipedia and the websites of BBC and Guardian are very popular.

What are your favourite ‘gadgets’ and why?

Top gadget is the MP3 player; most respondents have one and like to take it everywhere. Other favourite gadgets are digital camera, Laptop and mobile phone.

Do you have a mobile phone? Which tariff are you on? What do you look for in a mobile phone provider?

O2 and Orange are the most popular mobile phone providers; also mentioned: Virgin, Vodafone and pay as you go. Important are cheap rates, as much free texts and free minutes as possible and good reception.

What are your favourite TV shows?

The majority of the respondents enjoy watching American TV series such as Desperate Housewives, Nip/Tuck, Sex and the City and Lost as well as American sitcoms like Will and Grace and Friends. Also popular are the British soap operas Eastenders, Coronation Street and Hollyoaks.

Which magazines/newspapers do you buy?

Celebrity and fashion magazines like Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Vogue and Hello are popular, especially with women. Many respondents also read daily newspapers; Metro came out top, followed by Independent, Observer and Times.

Do you use MSN or write/read blogs? Which ones? Why?

Only very few respondents read or write blogs on a regular basis; the majority do not find online diaries relevant to them. MSN, on the other hand, is quite popular among this age group.

Retail & Shopping Habits

What are your favourite stores for clothing and why?

The respondents like to buy their clothes in a wide variety of high street shops. Affordable prices, stylish designs and a wide choice are the main reasons mentioned.

Do you prefer to shop on high street, in supermarkets or in markets or online?

Whereas nearly all respondents like to shop on high street, people differ on online shopping: they either like it because it is comfortable and quick or dislike it because they cannot see and try on the products before purchasing or distrust the safety precautions on the internet.

Do you use the Internet to research before you shop? Has the Internet changed the way you shop?

Most respondents use the Internet to research, i.e. to look what is available and compare prices. Whereas buying books, music and electronics online is quite common, buying clothes on the Internet is not very popular. For purchasing clothes they rather visit high street shops.

What do you really enjoy your shopping for and which are your favourite retailers and why?

Top purchases include clothes and shoes, especially for big occasions and electrical products and music. T

How often do you shop at out of town locations?
Half of the respondents shop in out of town locations about once a month; the other half never or hardly ever because they do not have a car or do not see the need to go somewhere else than their local high street.

What would you draw into a store? Promotions or displays. Or do you go there because of habit?

Most respondents feel enticed to go into a store when they see sales or promotions; offers like “Buy one, get one free” and reduced prices work for many of them. Also a good way to get attention from potential customers of this age group are interesting window displays.

Work & Leisure

How do you spend your spare time? / Do you have hobbies? Do you do exercises, educational classes or travelling?

Sports come out top of the list of spare time activities, followed by socializing. Many respondents like to go to the cinema, to concerts or shopping. They also spend a lot of time online, chatting or playing games.

How do you socialise? What are your best nights out?

Our respondents’ best nights out usually take place in clubs, bars, pubs or restaurants and are spent with many friends. Drinking plays an important role in those get-togethers.

What are the best/worst aspects of working?

Their income, colleagues and the fact that they love their work are for many respondents the best aspects of working. On the negative side are: unfriendly customers, getting out of bed early, bad hours, pressure as well as boredom and commuting.

How important is your career compared to your social life?

Most consider their careers as more important than their social lives, partly because they want to have a good lifestyle, be able to get onto the property ladder and afford a good social life.

Do you work for money or for career advancement or to meet people?

The overwhelming majority of the respondents work mainly because of the money they earn, especially those who are working in a side job. Not unimportant, however, are the social contacts they get at work.

 

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