Competently Ordinary: New Middle Class Consumers in the Emerging Markets

Abstract

Although the new middle classes in emerging markets are a matter of significant interest for marketing scholars and managers, there has been little systematic research on their values and preoccupations. This article focuses on new middle class consumers to identify the new, shared socio-ideological sensibilities informed by the recent neoliberal reforms in emerging markets and examines how these sensibilities are actualized in consumption. Through an ethnographic study of fashion consumption in Turkey, the authors explicate three salient new middle class sensibilities, which implicate the mastery of the ordinary in pursuit of connections with people, institutions, and contexts. These sensibilities crystallize into a particular mode of consumption-"formulaic creativity"-which addresses consumers' desire to align with the middle and helps them reconcile the disjuncture between the promises of neoliberalism and the realities of living in unstable societies. The article provides recommendations on product portfolio management, positioning strategies, and marketing mix adaptation decisions.

Class talk: habitus and class in parental narratives of school choice

“…First, our participants' narratives reveal bidirectional class contempt (Lawler, 2005b) as they attempt to establish social differences by 'distancing' themselves from those 'above' and 'below' them (Atkinson, 2010;Sayer, 2002). Second, our participants express a sense of (un)familiarity of (not) fitting in with 'people like us' (Byrne, 2009) and thus, proclaim that their school choice reflects the desire for being comfortable 'in the middle' (Kravets & Sandikci, 2014). Finally, our participants' narratives uncover an undercurrent of middle class guilt, which exposes the moral dilemma of being a good parent and being an egalitarian citizen.…”

“…Our sample's lack of racial and class diversity can be largely attributed to the geographical context of the research and the referral sampling procedure rather than an unquestioning assumption of a white middle class norm (Byrne, 2009). The sample is unrepresentative of the UK population, yet its homogeneity enables an in-depth exploration of the dynamics and internal divisions (Archer, 2011) of a group of parents that Kravets and Sandikci (2014) describe as being comfortably 'in the middle'.…”

“…With the erosion of overt class differences, Kravets and Sandikci (2014) argue that class practices have become more subtle, and thus, necessitate an analysis that reveals the tacit operations of social stratification. Reay (2005, p. 914) contends that the UK educational system constitutes 'a social context where the workings of class are not only concentrated and made explicit but are also heavily implicit'.…”

“…While these studies have contributed to a nuanced understanding of inter-class differences, Kravets and Sandikci (2014) argue that the 'taste dynamics' within one class faction -in particular that of the 'middle class' -remain under-theorised. Our article addresses this gap by exploring how intra-class dynamics reinforce social hierarchies among the middle classes.…”

Innovation capability, marketing capability and firm performance: A two-nation study of China and Korea

“…In emerging markets, consumers have become more conscious to product quality and variety of choice with more market knowledge and market supply; the growth of middle class especially shows the challenging appetite of consumers (Kravets and Sandikci, 2014;Sheth, 2011 to survive the tough competition brought by foreign companies (Ju et al, 2013).…”