Flaming Singapore explores how young Muslims around the globe are co-opting traditional Islamic values in new and interesting ways, and discusses how brands can capture the attention of this growing market.
11. MODERN MUSLIM IS A MINDSET
YOUNG
FAITHFUL
OPEN-MINDED
CONNECTED
DIGITALLY SAVVY
INDEPENDENT
CONFIDENT
AMBITIOUS
IMAGINATIVE
CREATIVE
12. THEY WANT & EXPECT IT ALL
“POP ISLAM” REFERS TO A YOUTH CULTURE THAT HAS EMERGED IN THE LAST
DECADE. THESE YOUNG PEOPLE ARE CONSERVATIVE AND RELIGIOUS
MUSLIMS. AT THE SAME TIME, THEY SEE THEMSELVES AS PART OF MODERN
SOCIETY AND DEFINE THEMSELVES AS GLOBAL CITIZENS. THEY SEE THEMSELVES
AS THE NEXT GENERATION OF ISLAM
- DR. GOTZ NORDBRUCH, SCHOLAR OF ISLAM STUDIES, GOETHE INSTITUTE
13. “We wanted to show the
fusion of our cultures…
The women in the video
all wear hijab, but they
embrace their own
unique style. The video
was meant to spark an
important conversation:
Muslims are not
monolithic."
14.
15. “I’m not going to run
away from the person I
am. I practice Islam.
It’s my religion, it’s my
belief – it’s normal. You
know everyone has their
own thing, their own
beliefs. It doesn’t stop
me.”
35. 35
After over eight years with Flamingo Harriet has
enjoyed a research career that has spanned the
globe including four years in London, three years
based in the Caribbean, LatAm and USA and now
the Singapore office.
Harriet has considerable experience working on
exploratory and brand positioning projects.
Previous work has included family and teen
ethnographies in Indonesia to uncover insights for
NPD opportunities, caregiver interviews in the UK
to help position cancer care services for a major
private health insurer and in-home IDIs with mum
and baby to understand night time routines in
China and Malaysia.
Harriet has also helped brands to enter the Middle
East markets and has studied Muslim beauty
trends.
H A R R I E T R O B E R T S O N
D I R E C T O R , F L A M I N G O S I N G A P O R E
Editor's Notes
Let’s start with some facts…
And numbers are growing. Predicted 2.2 billion by 2030. A 35% rise globally
62% of them are in SE Asia
THEY ARE UNDENIABLY THE NEXT IMPORTANT AND LARGELY UNTAPPED GLOBAL OPPORTUNITY
Islam dictates and prescribes many aspects of daily life for it’s followers… so it’s only natural that…
Brands have started to take notice, but there are many gaps and success has been patchy and piecemeal
There have been some famous examples of brands getting wrong – Nike Allah trainers, MasterCard mecca compass and scandals about pork in the nuggets
Global brands have been afraid of the backlash and so have often been quite conservative in their approach, offering launching Muslim range extensions or buying up local Muslim brands to boost their portfolio.
Basically the picture isn’t that exciting or innovative.
WE AS MARKETERS HAVE BEEN LAZY AND UNIMAGINATIVE IN REACHING OUT TO MUSLIMS
Going forwards these kinds of strategies are not going to be good enough to capture the attention of the new generation of Muslim consumers.
Variously called hijabbers, mipsters, hijabistas… we’re calling them modern Muslims
They seek to fuse all aspects of their identity without compromise.
They are not rebels, they work with the rules of Islam, not against them. For them modernity and faith are not antithetical, they are inseparable. They want and expect it all
Iranian New Yorker
Founder of a group called Sheik and Bake, the outfit behind the viral Mipsterz video of 2013
Dynamic Malay career girl and a proudly observant Muslim
Works in an office job. She describes herself as leading a regular life, she’s financially smart, ambitious, creative and independent. In the next 10 years she talks about fulfilling her God given role, which for her is ‘having some cute children and bagging a loving husband’. She also talks about her ambition for promotion so she can travel to Europe and see the world.
Visma lives at home with her parents. She’s been wearing hijab since she started co-ed classes at Uni. It represents her commitment to religion, to a more adult phase in life and to her future. She says “I feel more at ease in the hijab. It’s safer when I travel on public buses. It’s also a fashion statement, part of my femininity. It’s both about being respectable and expressing myself as young woman.”
Masha lives in an all female boarding house near her college. She’s the first girl in her family to live outside before marriage. She says: “From what I wear you would not know I’m a Muslim really. I don’t cover my ankles or wear hijab. Some might label me as no-practising, but I do. I pray mostly, fast during Ramadan and most importantly I feel very Muslim.
The negotiation between Islam and modern or secular life is not new. All generations have grappled with this in their own way.
But this generation are doing it in new ways and digital is a big part of that. It’s a defining feature.
Esp. for women where it has offered a new platform for self-expression.
Tudung Traveller: believes the world is meant to be discovered one amazing place at a time. Singaporean Malay
#altmuslimahstyle: culture, style and lifestyle magazine that focuses on gender issues in Islam. Contributors are Muslim and non-Muslims alike
#notinmyname: digital reaction UK Muslims to the negative press coverage of Islam in the wake of ISIS crisis
Values such as family, modesty, community, fairness in processing and production
Some brands are doing this intentionally. Some have become hit with Muslims almost by accident… let’s look at some examples
Participants photographed in family setting. The series evoked a sense of community
Collaboration between famous UK Mipster blogger, famed for her scarf tutorials and styling
Breathable nail polish – intended as a health proposition, not a halal one
WOM cause rush on sales
If you want to connect to the modern Muslim target…
You don’t have to lead your communications with a woman in a hijab, get a halal stamp or become Sharia compliant.
Striking a chord with Muslims probably doesn’t require a complete overhaul or lots of NPD.
There are very likely smaller tweaks that you can do to make your brands more Muslim-friendly
Muslims are a geographically and cultural diverse bunch, even this smaller sub-set of Modern Muslims
But you can cut through complexity by tapping into core Islamic values such as transparency, honesty in processing, environmental awareness, community and family
Frankly many of these values are just good ideas that many future facing, non-Muslim, brands are doing anyway
Modern Muslims are building their identities at the intersections of modernity and traditional Islamic values
They are ahead of the curve in terms of their digital behaviour, have a heightened sense of style, a global mind-set and ambitions. They are looking for brands that are behaving in this way too
They are the leaders of this new generation of Muslim consumers, brands would should take note!