The Sociology of Primark

The Sociology of Primark

As promised yesterday here’s a few brief thoughts about Primark. First though, a quick reference back to yesterday’s posting, given that Gail Trimble - or was it Corpus Christi - actually won University Challenge. As I said yesterday, a few questions about football could have swung the result the other way. Ahem, so you may note, knowledge is not just about class; it is also gendered.

Back to Primark. I can’t say it’s one of my favourite places. It’s too hot and there’s a distinct lack of oxygen. However, my daughter has shopping needs and it is my role in life to help her out on this. Primark is quite phenonomenon -my business and economics colleagues can explain the numbers to you, and so can today’s Sun .

Sociologically there are a couple of things I’ll mention today. Firstly, if you’re doing the OCR specification, you’ll doubtless be interested in the sociology of consumption and it’s relationship to identity. So a question which arises is whether there is a ‘typical’ Primark customer and what are the implications for your social identity if you let it be known that you regularly shop at Primark? Secondly, social change and globalisation.

Despite my physical discomfort, I find Primark in Oxford Street an utterly amazing experience. There are apparently people from all over the globe traipsing up and down its hallowed aisles. I hear lots of French, Spanish, Chinese or maybe Japanese, and what I think is Arabic. Women wear the hijab and the niqab. And in a moment that captures all the ironies and complexities, I hear a mobile with an Allah Akbar ringtone: now that’s what I call globalisation.

What about you? What features of globalisation have you noticed in your community? How is globalisation affecting social identities where you live?