According to Mail Newspapers: An unprecedented set of economic and social factors has led to a dramatic shift in family dynamics in the UK.
This has led to the emergence of a key group of consumers – Super Parents – who are shouldering the burdens that the downturn has brought about, helping to keep families together and enabling them to stay afloat.
There are four million Super Parents in the British population, aged between 50 and 71 years.
With 3.3 million 20-34 year olds still living at home due to rising house prices and rental costs, a lack of employment for young adults and stagnant wages, Super Parents are providing shelter for their children long after they would have expected them to leave home.
Mail Newspapers research shows that 42% of Mail readers have helped, or are planning to help their children get on the property ladder.
Super Parents are also shouldering a huge portion of the burden of their grandchildren’s’ childcare, which they provide to allow their children to go to work. The value of this childcare was calculated to equate to £7 billion in 2013.
Super Parents have an average family income of over £34,000 and savings and investments of over £42,000 on average.
Further research has shown that as well as providing financial support, Super Parents are the key source of information and advice to their family members across a surprisingly diverse range of subjects, putting them in a central and influential role in the lives of their children and their grandchildren.
Given the pivotal position these Super Parents occupy within the multi-generational family, they feel understandably compelled to communicate and offer advice. Indeed, 72% of Mail readers agree that they take a keen interest in the lives of close friends and family.
Finance is a key area of Super Parent expertise that they are happy to pass on – 30% of Mail readers admit to ‘always telling family and friends about financial products’. They have worked and saved hard during their lives and are now in a position to help out their families. Other areas of interest and expertise include health, food and nutrition, education, holidays and travel and entertainment.
With their considerable buying power and the influence they have on investments of other family members, planners are expected to build strong relationships with Super Parents, in a potential shift away from a traditionally youth-focused market.
Although marketers are aware that we have an ageing population in Britain, they may not be aware of the extent of this group’s incredible influence and buying power. Yet in ignoring Super Parents, they may be at risk of missing the bigger picture.
Rosemary Gorman, Group Advertisement Director, Mail Newspapers, commented: “One in four Super Parents is a Mail reader. The power and influence of Super Parents in 2014 reveals a fascinating shift in consumer behaviour. These insights challenge us all to think more creatively about how we talk to consumers who are at the heart of their families and influencing decisions across a wide range of product categories.”
