Mainstream

About

The Mainstream is the biggest part of the market, but with alternative/trendy lifestyles and music now much more accessible, the various Mainstream Tribes also lose much of their membership in later years. Those who remain tend to specialise into more aspirational subsets like Casuals, Boy Racers and Sports Junkies. Siege mentality makes the alpha males among Mainstream tribes suspicious of trendy music or clothes and quick to criticise peers who seem to be standing out. Big brand sportswear and high street fashion predominates with Mainstream tribes and music, even for Ravers, is mostly commercial.

The Mainstream dictates the celebrity system by their willingness, or not, to buy into them. The most effective way to market to Mainstream tribe members is through TV and radio. The internet is used for entertainment but increasingly for interaction as well. All subsets are also keen Youtube viewers.

Townies are the regular kids seen hanging out on the high street – they regard themselves as normal, and they are, favouring popular music and fashion (they’re generally suspicious of Emos, Goths and anyone different). Casuals are the inheritors of the ladmag generation, keen on crisp sportswear, football and drinking. Chavs are a brash subset, proud of their tacky fashion and anti-social behaviour, while Street Rats are a social underclass Tribe which no-one joins of their own volition. Ravers are party-loving kids who used to be fashion leaders but now find their scene heavily laced with alternative music except in a few stubborn outposts. Boy Racers love cars and bass-driven music; they are resourceful and web savvy and proud of their lifestyles – just like Sports Junkies. Both of these aspirational Tribes will cut out friends and habits that affect their dedication.

A fun-loving, unassuming bunch who still rule the nation - welcome to the Mainstream.

Stats

This segment has little interest in ‘seeing the world’ in the future. (Index = 78 vs. all 16-24 year olds)

Having children is very important to this segment’s future (44%) compared to all 16 to 24s (39%)

34% of this segment definitely agree that they “love spending time with my family.” This is slightly more than the total for 16 to 24s (31%)