Consumers are increasingly realising that the state will not be there for them as it has been in the past. We’re on our own. Solo Citizen relates to the increasingly large consumer group that lives in an age of cuts, restrictions, lowering living standards and diminishing state support, which is affecting their purchasing behaviour and trust in governments and corporations alike. People are coming together in communities or supporting themselves with their own resources to counterbalance the lack of support from the state. Our dramatically ageing population means that the pension burden is at a critical level, and will continue to soak up scarce resources going forward. Throughout this issue, we’ll highlight how consumers are responding to this tough environment.

1. IDENTICA
INSIGHT
Issue 5
SOLO CITIZEN

2. SOLO CITIZEN
Issue 5
806,000
British workers retired
in 2012, twice as many
as ever before
£6.6
has been cheated out
of consumers pockets
in unfair trading
practices but only
£140m will be spent
to enforce against
these practices
BILLION
SOLO CITIZEN
Consumers are increasingly realising that
the state will not be there for them as it
has been in the past. We’re on our own.
Solo Citizen relates to the increasingly
large consumer group that lives in an age
of cuts, restrictions, lowering living
standards and diminishing state support,
which is affecting their purchasing
behaviour and trust in governments and
corporations alike.
People are coming together in communities
or supporting themselves with their own
resources to counterbalance the lack of
support from the state. Our dramatically
ageing population means that the pension
burden is at a critical level, and will
continue to soak up scarce resources going
forward.
Throughout this issue, we’ll highlight how
consumers are responding to this tough
environment.
02

3. SOLO CITIZEN
Issue 5
93of Baby Boomers believe that
the state will not look after them
%
38of Britons trust their government,
while 50% of them trust Amazon
%
Source: The Future Laboratory, Future Foundation
Enormous levels of people retiring and a
spike in self-employment is no coincidence.
A secondary career is now necessary to
maintain a certain standard of living
after the date of retirement.
Baby Boomers have done well out of
occupational pensions, low property prices,
welfare support and all the while trashing
our planet. We’ve had the boom, here comes
the bust.
These are three areas we’d like to focus
upon to show how consumers are behaving
and acting differently in response.
CROWDSOURCING
If consumers align
together there can
be significant
mutual gain.
BRAND
TRANSPARENCY
Due to lack of trust,
consumers are seeking
honesty from brands.
NEW PREMIUMS
Own brand sales have
risen but buying them
doesn’t have to be
be a punishment.
ENLIGHTENMENT 2.0
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4. SOLO CITIZEN
Issue 5
1 2
3 4
Crowdsourcing is one trend in which
society is responding to the Solo Citizen.
Communities are fusing together for a
larger mutual gain.
Collaborative funding via the web, is one of
the standouts for growth in this evolving
collaborative economy.
There are currently two crowdsourcing
models; either the community can donate
capital to reach a specific target or that
community can invest their capital for a
slice of equity within a proposed business.
Kickstarter.com is an online portal that
hosts projects that can be crowdfunded. It
currently has 43,000 successful projects.
Groupon and the like maximise spending
power by aggregating purchases.
1. Kickstarter: OUYA
is a new media
console that received
$8,5m from 63,000
people meaning that
the console launched
successfully and
retails at $99.
2. Kickstarter: The
Pebble Smartwatch
received $10,266,844
from 68,928 people
meaning that it went
into production in Jan
13 and is shipping
15,000 a week.
3. College
Crowdfunding allows
the public to invest in
students college funds
to eventually see a
return when they start
to earn a certain salary.
4. Walmart have
proposed the idea to
allow their customers
to deliver their
neighbours online
purchases in exchange
for rewards.
CROWDSOURCING
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5. SOLO CITIZEN
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1
2
43
With economic stability and consumer
trust being critically low we’re investing in
brands that are honest and reassuringly
transparent. Britons are being forced into
self-employment and we’re starting to
support them.
The trust that we lack in central
government we’re now placing in people
and their ideas.
Made.com (1) is an online furniture portal
that produces products made to order and
subsequently saves the consumer a 70%
cost compared to leading retailers.
1. Made.com
2. Pop-up Britain are
accommodating the
surge in self
employment and
helping small
businesses have a
short term presence
upon our wheezing
high streets.
3. Everlane is an
online fashion retailer
that produces data for
its customers
regarding the real
costs of production
and why their products
have certain prices.
4. The People’s
Supermarket is a
store managed and
owned by a network of
volunteers that offers
the local community
an alternative to other
supermarkets.
BRAND TRANSPARENCY
14
of the British workforce
are self employed in 2013
%
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2
06
Following a decade of bingeing and
decadence ending in recession, we have a
situation of ever decreasing disposable
income meaning that consumers are forced
to trade down with consumables.
Research shows that consumers are often
ashamed to be seen with value products.
Purchasing value product ranges should
not be a punishment.
Brands are now transforming lower
price-point products to have a greater
appeal to those customers forced to trade
down on price but unwilling to trade
down on image.
1. Ikea’s new value
food range takes on a
clean and crisp
identity, presenting a
tone every bit as
confident as a brand.
2. Ocado, the online
grocer, have produced
clean and refreshing
tone for their new
own-brand products,
making them seem a
treat rather than
just essentials.
NEW PREMIUMS
36increase in UK own-brand sales
%

7. SOLO CITIZEN
Issue 5
WHAT THIS MEANS?
You may argue that there have always been
trust issues with our central government
and brands. It’s important to understand
how consumers are reacting in 2013 to
the realisation of a broken social strategy.
They’re grouping in communities and
solving problems without the state’s help,
looking to each other for solutions.
Brands are being far more transparent to
regain consumers’ trust and loyalty. There
are obvious risks to transparency for any
brand, but it would seem that this is fast
becoming a cost of doing business for many.
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8. THANK YOU
Issue 5
SOLO CITIZEN
TO FIND OUT MORE: Call +44 (0)20 3451 9700,
or email Leah Williams leah.williams@identica.com