UK Tribes

UK Tribes

Leading Edge Tribes are proactive scene leaders that live for the new and now. From making music to curating club nights, publishing magazines to documenting the latest in cool online – these guys collaborate across Tribes, develop contacts, share ideas and set the agenda.

Attuned to global trends and switched on to developments across diverse fields, they reject passive consumerism and are driving tastes across virtually all other segments on the map. They might be hard to predict, but following what’s going down here is a must for any marketer.

The Leading Edge used to mean older Tribes (it takes time and confidence to become an expert!) but increased access to smart devices means the segment is getting younger and more diverse – anyone with determination and an original idea now has the platform to be heard online.

Activists

Activists are a major new player in the Leading Edge – on the front line at protests and driving the politicisation of UK Youth.

Activists are passionate about inequality and social change, so are taking to the streets and social media to protest, campaign, squat and sit-in. Especially relevant in 2015 with the General Election looming, Activists are aspirational across the map and admired for their passion and dedication to the cause – be that racial equality, housing, feminism, the environment.

Creatives

Creatives are still top of the Tribal map and care constantly creating new content

DIYers are creative, tech savvy self-starters that bring culture to life for Tribes today – they produce music, promote club nights, start indie brands and create festival stages. Many are also Creatives, but DIYers are set apart by their aspirations to ‘make it’, create events and actively influence culture in their area. DIYers used to be focused more in London, but in 2015 all major cities have a strong DIY scene.

Uban Artists

Urban artists are a new category to fit a myriad of smaller Urban scene Tribes that are growing across the UK.

Urban arts (think genres like rap, beatboxing, spoken word, graffiti) and Urban music and fashion influences (think Trax, Chicago Footwork, UK Grime) are so pervasive and influential across UK youth culture today – the Urban Artists are part of the Leading Edge segment but 100% Urban.

DIYers

DIYers are creative, tech savvy self-starters that bring culture to life for Tribes today – they produce music, promote club NIGHTS, start indie brands and create festival stages.

Many are also Creatives, but DIYers are set apart by their aspirations to ‘make it’, create events and actively influence culture in their area. DIYers used to be focused more in London, but in 2015 all major cities have a strong DIY scene.

While their 2012 touch points remain (resourceful, tech driven and business orientated) to be a DIYer in 2015 you need to have seen genuine success – so vlogging with 1M+ followers can make you a DIYer, but being a bedroom DJ or Tumblr fanatic won’t!

Scenesters

Replacing the recently demoted Hipsters – the scenesters encapsulate everything that Hipsterdom has failed to in recent years.

Setting themselves apart by creating new trends by co-opting fashion and music from accross the Tribal map and blending it with their own individual attitudes. Ever difficult to pin down, they move at lightning speed through youth culture – moving onto whats ‘next’ before it has a chance to become ‘now’.