Who are your customers?

Who are your customers? No , who are they really……..

Adultescent(ad.ul.TES.unt) n. A middle-aged person who continues to participate in and enjoy youth culture. Example Citation: PlayStation2 and X-Box are all very well. But for die-hard video-gameconnoiseurs the Golden Age ended on 1 February, when Segaannounced that the Dreamcast was to cease production after just three years. Stung by Sony's success since 1995 with PlayStation, the veteran video-game firm had put all its energies into a final charge on the hearts and minds of kids and adultescents with an affordable, technologically advanced new console.—Peter Lyle, "Farewell 2001," Independent on Sunday, December 30

Kidult(ki.DULT or KID.ult) n. A middle-aged person who continues to participate in and enjoy youth culture. • Example Citation: 'Adult toys' may sound like a risque phrase, but it is also used to describe the playthings that 'kidults' (those of us who never quite grew up) have been buying in increasing numbers.—Celia Walden, "Trigger happy," Mail On Sunday, January 13

Scuppien. An urban professional who is socially conscious. • I'm not a true scuppie — a Socially Conscious Upwardly Mobile Person — because newspaper people are not so much upwardly mobile as backwardly noble. I can't afford to blow the rent money at Whole Foods on organic cruelty-free, hand-churned onion dip or imported free-trade hemp dental floss. • —Samantha Bennett, "How Green Is My Footprint?," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, April 27, 2008

Duppie(DUP.ee) n. A depressed urban professional; a person who once had a high-status or high-paying job and must now work in a menial or lower paying job. • Example Citation: J. Patrick Lincoln can relate to such work woes. In recent months, the founder and director of Life Transitions career counseling and life coaching in San Antonio has seen plenty of duppies struggle with escalating debts and depression. • "The reality may be that they might have to take on what we call a 'stop-loss job,'" Lincoln says, referring to a lower-paying position the typical duppie once scoffed at.

Boomeranger(BOO.muh.rang.ur) n. An adult child who returns home to live with his or her baby-boomer parents. • Example Citation: Though many students only stay for a few months, others linger at home even after they are on their feet financially. They are attracted by a room of their own, disposable income, and eager-to-help baby-boomer parents who are welcoming their "boomerangers" — as they are being called — back to the nest.—Kim Campbell, "More graduates opt to live with mom and dad," The Christian Science Monitor, July 9

Kipperacronym. An adult son or daughter,particularly one aged 30 or more, who still lives with his or her parents. • Have you got a kipper in your nest? The first withering acronym of the year has been coined by the British building society Prudential to describe adult children reluctant the fly the nest. "Kippers" — Kids In Parents' Pockets Eroding Retirement Savings — are a million strong in Britain. In Japan, where they are described as "Parasite Singles", adults living in the family home are considered a serious drain on the ageing population.—Louise Holden, "Have you got a kipper in your nest?," The Irish Times, January 13

Furkidn. A pet treated as though it were one's child. Also: fur-kid, fur kid. Example Citations: • My name is Brenda Mejia and I'm owned by two Australian cattle dogs. I don't have kids, so I call my dogs my 'furkids.' They keep me as busy as a soccer mom. • —Brenda Mejia, "Pet stories," The Desert Sun (Palm Springs, CA), April 30

SMUMn. A woman who finds motherhood and her children tedious and uninteresting.[Acronym from Smart, Middle-Class, Uninvolved, Mother.] • In her new book, Mommies Who Drink, U.S. actress Brett Paesel confesses she would rather hit happy hour with her friends than have "fun with felt." And the blogosphere is exploding with posts from mothers telling the dirty truth that motherhood is, well, mind-numbing. Dubbed SMUMs — smart, middle-class, uninvolved mothers — these women are no longer willing to feign interest in watching Barney for the 538th time.—Rebecca Eckler, "Motherhood is boring," The Globe and Mail, August 19, 2006

Free-range kidn. A child who is given lots of time for unstructured activities and play during the day. Example Citations: In his new book Under Pressure: Rescuing Childhood from the Culture of Hyper-Parenting, Canadian philosopher and writer Carl Honoré wrestles with his own well-intended overparenting and taps into a number of schools and families inspired by the free-range child. ... Elsewhere, Mr. Honoré documents outposts of free-range kids around the world and finds them flourishing. He cites an outdoor nursery called The Secret Garden in Scotland where kids can run free. "It brings together so many of the anxieties and problems we're talking about and it seems to solve them in one fell swoop."—Tralee Pearce, "The free-range child," The Globe and Mail, May 13, 2008

KGOYabbrev. The perceived notion that children of all ages are performing activites, particularly playing with toys, traditionally seen as being suitable for older children. • Kay Hymowitz, author of Ready Or Not: What HappensWhen We Treat Children As Small Adults, accuses the marketing industry of deliberately sexualising girls for profit. 'Marketeers make it sound like "KGOY" is just a factof nature. The truth is, they have played a central role in making it happen,' she says. • 'They want to sell products; they know kids who are independent and "empowered" are more likely to tell their parents to buy those products and that the way youseize kids' attention is to make them feel older, more glamorous — and sexier.' At the 2003 Kid Power conference for marketeers to children and teens in London, organisers instructed attendees in how to harness 'the power of word of mouth', how to ensure their products are 'the talk of the playground', how to get past 'the gatekeeper' (Mum and Dad), and to be aware of the influence of 'pester power'.—Tess Stimson, "Brazen Bratz," Daily Mail, October 19, 2006

Grey nomad (gray NOH.mad) n. A retired person who travels extensively, particular in a recreational vehicle. • Example Citation: Mr Jeffcock turned 70 last birthday. He is one of a generation of "grey nomads," old in body but young at heart, backpacking its way around the world. Spurred on by greater life expectancy and better health in old age, they are travelling independently and sleeping in youth hostels.—Mark Rowe, "Itchy Feet," The Independent, February 27

DINS (dinz) acronym. Double Income, No Sex; The state of a couple where both partners work but they are too tired or stressed to have sex. Example Citation: Are you experiencing DINS? That's Double Income No Sex. According to the April issue of Health magazine, researchers say it's natural for libidos to "cool off during the career- and family-building years."—"Sexual blip?," Sunday News, April 21

Skippien. School kid with income and purchasing power. Example Citation: Tracking trends and seeking opportunities, I scanned the pages for demographic data - age groups within age groups. Am I a DINK (Dual Income, No Kids)? No, more like a SINK. Perhaps a PUPPIE (Poor Urban Professional)? Definitely not a skippie (School Kid with Income and Purchasing Power).—Brian Cracknell, "Going marketing," New Straits Times, June 30

Transumer n. A big-spending traveler; a person who travels to shop. [Blend of transient and consumer.] Example Citations: Feeling somewhat abandoned by tight-fisted Australian consumers, Myer's dynamic duo Bill Wavish and Bernie Brooks have gone in search of a far more appealing demographic — the transumers. For the uninitiated, a transumer is a consumer in transit; somebody who spends up big while waiting around an airport for a connecting flight, or while enjoying a night in a foreign city during a travel stopover.—Rebecca Urban, Two out of three ain't bad but leaves Biota short, The Australian, July 22, 2008

Recessionistan. A person who dresses stylishly on a tight budget. • Example Citations: She's superstylish, always able to buy a round of drinks and still seems to be wearing a new outfit every time you see her. She's a recessionista, that New York marvel who's a magnet for a good deal. And in this economy, she's got a lot to teach us. ... Finney agrees that aside from knowing where to find the best discounts, making better use of what you have is a key trait of thetrue recessionista.—Eloise Parker, Frugal fashion: New Yorkers learn to look good for a lot less, Daily News (New York), July 13, 2008

Pester powernoun. Theability children have to nag their parents into purchasing items they would otherwise not buy or performing actions they would otherwise not do. • Example Citation: Nine out of every 10 pupils questioned claimed they wanted to learn about energy efficiency in schools. The centre adds that a key benefit from encouraging pupils to tackle the issue is the wider impact their new understanding appears to have in the community. Children are using their pester power to turn school learning into positive energy-efficiency habits at home.—Jerome Monahan, "A new generation," The Guardian, January 29

Club-sandwich generationn. People who provide care for their parents, children, and grandchildren. Example Citation: Dan English, Kootenai County clerk, spoke from experience when he said, ''There is a real need for such a support group. Lots of people in our age range can use that kind of help. We talk a lot about the sandwich generation, but there are a lot of us in what I call the triple-decker or club-sandwich generation." These are folks dealing not only with aging parents, but also helping to raise their grandchildren, the fourth generation of their family.—Larry Belmont, "Grandparents raising grandkids may need help," The Spokesman-Review (Spokane, WA), September 14

"Most baby boomers don't feel fully 'grown up' until they are into their 40s. When our parents turned 50, we thought they were old! But today, women and men I've interviewed routinely feel they are five to 10 years younger than the age on their birth certificates. Fifty is what 40 used to be; 60 is what 50 used to be. Middle age has already been pushed far into the 50s — in fact, if you listen to boomers, there is no more middle age. So what's next? Welcome to Middlescence. It's adolescence the second time around."—Gail Sheehy, "New passages," U.S. News & World Report, June 9 Middlescencenoun. The turbulent, rebellious middle age of the baby boom generation.

Lipstick effectn. During arecession, the tendency for consumers to purchase small, comforting items such as lipstick rather than large luxury items. • If you've been following domestic news in recent weeks, you've probably heard about the "lipstick effect." As described in such outlets as NBC, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal, the idea is that, during a recession, women substitute small, feel-good items likelipstick for more expensive items like clothing and jewelry. And indeed, between August and October, lipstick sales were up 11 percent over the same period last year.—Norm Scheiber, "Replacement Killers," The New Republic, January 7

Social notworkingpp.Surfing a social networking site instead of working. Also: social not-working. • Example Citations: It's time businesses faced up to Facebook. Some users waste hours on social notworking sites, but a gentle hint may work better than a ban.—Daniel Robinson, "It's time businesses faced up to Facebook," IT Week, October 8, 2007

Defriendv. To remove a person from one's list of friends on a social networking site. Example Citations: • After Jerome Kerviel lost his employer, French investment bank Societe Generale, $7.2 billion, he also lost 7 of his 11 friends onFacebook. Smart move (MVE) by those ex-friends. You never know who's looking at your profile. Of course, at some point, you might be in a similar situation. Because this kind of thing happens all the time. So here's how to defriend that guy who just went into hiding after losing $7.2 billion.—"How to stop being Facebook friends with that guy who lost $7 billion," ValleyWag, January 29, 2008

Covert couturen. High-quality, custom-made fashions designed to look like off-the-rack clothing. Example Citation: A regular bespoke suit can cost about $5,000, already out of the range of most of us. But with every minor mogul and hip-hop artist sporting designer suits and haute branded merchandise, such items are losing the cachet of exclusivity. Or as author James B. Twitchell suggests in his new book, Living It Up: Our Love Affair with Luxury (Columbia University Press): "The one characteristic of modern luxe is its profound oxymoronic nature: If everyone can have it, is it still luxury?" So the obsessive luxe-seekers are drawn to the covert couture of a gentlemanly tailored suit. Just about no one will be able to tell immediately that they have spent someone's annual take-home pay on the ensemble. Only the smug look on their face may give it away.—Tralee Pearce, "Introducing the trophy suit," The Globe and Mail, February 1

Badge item (BADJ eye.tum) noun. A piece of clothing or other item that a person wears or consumes to make a statement about their taste or personality. • Example Citation: Michael C. Bellas, chairman of Beverage Marketing, suggested the new ads hit "the sweet spot for imports, co-ed social occasions. Beer has become very much a badge item," he added, "it makes a statement about the beer drinker."—Jane L. Levere, "Foster's beer is putting a new twist on its longtime 'How to speak Australian' campaign," The New York Times, March 6

Masstige (mas.TEEZH) n. A retail category that includes relatively lowpriced goods that come with a relatively prestigious brand name; goods and services priced between low-end, mass market items and high-end, prestigious items. Example Citations: • Mass Prestige or "Masstige." These goods occupy a sweet spot between mass and class. While commanding a premium over conventional products, they are priced well belowsuperpremium or old-luxury goods. An eight-ounce bottle of Bath & Body Works body lotion, for example, sells for $ 9, or $ 1.13 per ounce. That's a premium of 276% over an 11-ounce bottle of Vaseline Intensive Care, which sells for $ 3.29, or 30 cents an ounce.

Masstige • But it is far from being the highest-pricedproduct in the category: An eight-ounce bottle of Kiehl's Creme de Corps, one of many superpremium skin creams, retails for $ 24, a167% premium over the Bath & Body Works product—and many brands cost considerably more. Coach similarly positions its leather goods at prices below Gucci's, but well above those of Mossimo at Target. ... Although masstige products in new categories have great potential, they can be attacked by products that offer similar benefits at a lower price or by premium products that deliver a greater number of genuine benefits for a small price increment. Every masstige product, therefore, is a candidate for death in the middle.—Michael J. Silverstein, "Luxury for the Masses," Harvard Business

Makeunder(mayk.UN.dur)n. Achange of appearance in which a person is given a simpler look, especially one with little or no makeup and a basic hairstyle. Example Citation: What is shocking about Jamie Lee's "makeunder" isn't just the sight of a real middle-aged woman in her underwear. For a our bodies. Equal partners with our husbands, at the apex of our careers, we are still undone by the sight of ourselves in the mirror. Jamie Lee, by celebrating the post-feminist generation of women who were raised to reject artifice before they ever had anything to hide, it is a shock to learn that we have betrayed ourselves. —Karen von Hahn, "Flab and all," The Globe and Mail, September 7

Perma-youth(PUR.muh-yooth; th as in thin) n. Anappearance of youthfulness maintained over time by using cosmetic surgery; a person who maintains such an appearance. Example Citation: The book Eat to Beat Your Age by Janette Marshall is enticingly marketed as the perfect antidote for 30-year-olds who feel pressurised to have laser surgery in their lunch hours or for the over-60s who feel compelled to take up roller blading. It promises to show how food can contribute to good looks and longevity through nutritional habits and lifestyle without pandering to today's Perma-Youth culture. —"Ringing in another diet for the same few pounds," Daily Post, January 1

NORC (nohrk) acronym.Naturally occurring retirement community; an apartment building or neighborhood where most of the residents have grown old. Example Citation: One in four retirees lives in a place where at least half of the residents are older than 60. Contrast that with 6 percent who reside in golden-year nirvanas like Leisure World. Seniors are just like other generations, says University of Wisconsin-Madison Prof. Michael Hunt. They want to be with their peers, "but they also want to be part of the larger community, without the stigma" of being labeled old. Hunt coined the term NORC in the 1980s after surveying Madison apartments where the bulk of residents topped 60.Joellen Perry, "For most, there's no place like home," U.S. News & World Report, June 4, 2001—

Grandboomer(GRAND.boo.mur) n. A grandparent who is a part of the baby boom generation. • Example Citation: Given the "boom" in baby boom, by the year 2006, there will be 80 million grandparents in the U.S. Nearly half of them will be boomers — the youngest, best educated and most active generation of grandparents in history. Already, the average age of first-time grandparents is a spritely [sic] 47. And these "grandboomers" are giving a whole new look to the role.—Karen von Hahn, "Grandspending," The Globe and Mail, November 30

Generation lapn. The tendency for young people to be increasingly more technically savvy than their parents or elders. • Example Citation: 'It's not a generation gap; it's a generation lap. Gen Xers are lapping their elders in terms of their superior technological knowledge,' says Heather Neely, a Palo Alto management consultant who conducts workshops to helpcompanies manage Gen Xers."—Rebecca Kuzins, "Young boss, older worker, new problem," The San Francisco Examiner, March 7

Screenager (SCREE.nay.jur) n. A young person who has grown up with, and is therefore entirely comfortable with, a world of screens, particularly televisions, computers, ATMs, cell phones, and so on. Example Citation: The Net has become a powerful way to sell to youth, whether concerned parents like it or not. For most Gen Y kids — those born in North America after 1979 (about 60 million at last count) — technology is second nature. It's as if they come into this world with a game controller in one hand and a mouse in the other. They're referred to asgeneration wired, cyber tots, digital kids and screenagers, but what they really are is business. Big business.—Michael Snider, "Hey, kids! Let's play adver-games!,"

Bobo (BOH.boh) n. Aperson who combines affluence and a successful career with a preference for countercultural ideas and artifacts. Example Citation: "Bobos talk like hippies but walk like yuppies, decrying materialism while indulging in all manner of luxuries."—Victoria Loe Hicks, "Vision of the future," The Dallas Morning News, March 19, Notes: This word is a blend of the phrase bourgeois bohemian, which has been in the language for a long time, although it has usually been wielded as a mild insult.

Sheeple(SHEE.pul) n. People who are meek, easily persuaded, and tend to follow the crowd (sheep + people). Example Citation: Speaker Finneran informed his sheeple, I mean people, of their impending "voluntary" pay cuts at a caucus Wednesday afternoon. —Howie Carr, "These are unhappy times for Hackerama denizens," The Boston Herald, March 1

Urban triben. A group of city dwellers who have formed a bond through a common interest, such as work or a social or recreational activity. Example Citation: Once I identified this in my own life, I began to see tribes everywhere I looked: a house of ex-sorority women in Philadelphia, a team of ultimate-frisbee players in Boston and groups of musicians in Austin, Tex. Cities, I've come to believe, aren't emotional wastelands where fragile individuals with arrested development mope around self-indulgently searching for true love. There are rich landscapes filled with urban tribes.—Ethan Watters, "In My Tribe," The New York Times, October 14,

Affluenza(AF.loo.en.zuh) n. An extreme form of materialism in which consumers overwork and accumulate high levels of debt to purchase more goods (affluence + influenza). • Example Citation: Our society is more troubled by problems of overabundance. We are three times richer than in the 1950s, and diseases particular to "affluenza" clog our social and individual arteries. We are more overworked, more stressed, more depressed and much fatter. ... Critiques of affluenza go deeper than puritanical dismay at the aggressive vulgarity of materialism. The centrepiece of the argument is that we are obsessed privately that after passing a benchmark of real deprivation, greater prosperity does not lead to increased happiness.—Anne Manne, "Sell Your Soul And Spend, Spend, Spend," Syndey Morning Herald, April 14

Who are your customers?