Britain in 2004 and Beyond

It might seem like you've been back at work forever, but 2004 is still fairly new. Today DRNO takes a quick look at some recent predictions made by Datamonitor, for the coming year and the two or three after it, about the way the British work, eat, drink and socialise.

An increasing number of people are becoming fed up with the 'rat race' and determined to concentrate on the things that really matter to them. Another 200,000 people are expected to 'downshift' in 2004 to make a total of 3m. Datamonitor estimate that across Europe there are 12m downshifters, up from 9.3m in 1997.

Almost a quarter of the UK's workforce spend some or all of their week working at home - the highest proportion in Europe. Between 2002 and 2005, the number of homeworkers in the UK will have increased by 26% to reach a total of 8.2m.

The number of single person households in the UK will increase from 7m now to 9m in 2007, representing 40% of all households. In the same period singles' spending in all of Europe will have increased by 4% per year to just under €190bn.

Living with parents is increasingly normal for young adults. In the UK, over 57% of those aged 18-24 adults still rely on their parents for housing, reflecting rising housing costs, higher education costs and a reduction in state support. Their number is set to increase by an annual average of 43,000 in the next five years. There is also an increasing likelihood that young people in Northern Europe return home having left, a phenomenon referred to as 'boomeranging'.

Brits spend over one hour per day travelling. Datamonitor finds that UK consumers are the biggest 'on-the-go' eaters and drinkers in Europe. Over 22% of all eating occasions in the UK happen on-the-go, compared to a European average of 15%.

Datamonitor says that 'our circle of friends is shrinking' but that those friends are closer - and that this is reflected in the steady growth in entertaining at home. Over 320m gatherings were held in British homes this year, and this is set to increase by a further 11m in the next three years. These occasions represent high spend moments for all consumer goods. In 2003, Brits spent an estimated £522m on gourmet food when entertaining their guests and are expected to spend an extra £44m in 2004.

Brits are going out more and more in the evening - there were 4.4bn eating out 'occasions' in the UK last year - more than 70 per person. By 2006 the number of times the average person will go out in the evening to eat will rise from 1.4 to 1.6 times per week. As a result, the industry will benefit from a rise in spend of £2.3bn on evening foodservice meals and £700m on on-trade drinks.

In 2003, over £1bn was spent on organic food and drinks in the UK, and Datamonitor forecasts an additional spend of £127m in 2004. Overall, the organic food and drinks market in the UK is set to grow by almost 75% between 2002 and 2007, when it will be worth £1.6bn. 'Core consumers' (those who eat organic food more than once a week) still form a tiny minority but they are expected to reach over 7m people by 2006, compared to 2m in 2001.

The UK's population is growing fatter. Almost 60% of the UK adult population is either overweight or obese. This compares to only 40% of the French population. In 2003, Brits spent just under £10bn on diet food & drinks, and Datamonitor expect spending to increase by a further £140m next year. One third of the European population undertook a diet of some type last year.

Datamonitor say that rising levels of prosperity enjoyed by many today are breeding 'a new class of consumers with rising expectations about the quality of their lives and the spending power to facilitate achieving it' - these are referred to as 'service junkies'. The number of British consumers using home cleaning and laundry services is set to increase by 10% and 17% respectively. Over 3m households will be spending over £3bn on home cleaning services, and Datamonitor forecasts the market to rise to £4.2bn by 2007. An estimated 1.5m households used a laundry service in 2003 creating a market worth over £1bn and forecast to grow to a value of £2bn by 2007.

The company's Web site is at www.datamonitor.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas unless otherwise stated.

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