Working class men spend as much as upper middle class

by Jacquie Bowser, Brand Republic 16-May-08, 12:00

LONDON - Britain's working class men have the same disposable income each month as upper/upper middle class men and have more time to spend it, according to research commissioned by the Daily Sport.

Almost half (43%) of working class men surveyed, including builders, plumbers and firemen, revealed they had between £200 and £500 of disposable income to spend each month.

However, just 30% of the upper/upper middle class men surveyed had the same amount of ready cash.

Dr D A Holmes, senior psychologist at Manchester Metropolitan University and a consultant who worked with the Daily Sport on the report, said: "In the past, Britain's real working class men have been dismissed by many as a cash-poor group, but with a current shortage of skilled manual workers in the world, larger amounts of cash are passing rapidly through the hands of many of these forgotten men.

"For those without mortgages, kids or a demanding wife, almost all of their cash now goes ringing into high street tills."

Working class men also have more time to spend their cash. Just over 50% of men in the under £25,000 bracket have the whole weekend to consume at their leisure, compared with just a quarter (26%) of the £35,000 earners.

An additional quarter (23%) of upper/upper middle class men admit they only have on average six hours a week of leisure.

Barry McIlheney, Sport Newspapers editor-in-chief, said: "For too long advertisers have had an obsession with the upper/middle class audience, forgetting that the Britain's average bloke has a high disposable cash income and the time to spend it.

"Today we are reintroducing the forgotten blokes of Britain to the mainstream and communicating their spending potential."

The Real Bloke Report was carried out by Tickbox research last month. Just over 1,000 males were surveyed.