MONEY STILL KEY FOR YUPPIES OF YESTERYEAR

ARE THE 1980s YOUNG URBAN PROFESSIONALS NOW OLDER, RICHER AND WISER?

With a sequel to the 1987 hit movie Wall Street soon to hit our screens, it seems that ruthless stockbroker Gordon Gekko’s famous mantra ‘Greed is good’ may still resonate with the ‘yuppies of yesteryear’.

The RIAS ‘Yuppies of Yesteryear’ report1 reveals that money is more important than ever to some of the UK’s 11.9m2 50 – 65 year olds, a number of whom were the twenty and thirty-something high flyers of the 1980s. Just under a third (29%) admit that money matters to them even more today than it did three decades ago, and one sixth (16%) see earning a bigger salary as their key financial priority for the next 10 years.

While the Yuppies – young, high achieving city-dwellers with well-paid jobs and affluent lifestyles – were known for their love of making money, this was also a famously technology savvy and socially connected generation.  

It seems that this trait could have grown up with them – one in five
50–65 year olds (21%) say that they still keep up with the latest gadgets,  with four out of ten (39%) more interested in the latest gizmos than ever before.  

Older, richer, wiser
While they retain their ‘yuppie mentality’ over gadgetry and technology, it seems that the yuppies of yesteryear are now more prudent with their hard earned and much prized cash – trading ‘Spend! Spend! Spend!’ for financial security.  When asked about financial priorities for the next ten years, almost a quarter (23%) said preparing for their retirement and almost one fifth (18%) plan to pay off a mortgage or debt.  One in ten (11%) are prioritising saving more generally.

There is still a hardcore contingent of 16% who are prioritising earning more money in the next 10 years, despite being past the perceived ‘peak’ of their lifetime earning potential (generally regarded as the mid 40s).

Working it…
The pursuit of six figure salaries and long working hours characterised the yuppie career path of the mid 1980s.  Over two fifths (44%) of 50-65 year olds admit that their career was everything to them 30 years ago, with more than one in ten (12%) of them still maintaining that they are as career driven as ever. Today, whilst over one third (36%) are retired or semi-retired, one fifth (17%) are still achieving in a highly pressurised work environment, and 7% feel they are at the pinnacle of their career.

Gadget-crazy
Traditional yuppie trademarks like the supersize brick-like mobile phone, fax machine and sushi maker have now been replaced with ipods, laptops and vacuum cleaners.

Two in five (39%) 50-65 year olds are even more interested in technology and gadgets than they were 30 years ago. Two thirds (64%) own a laptop, and 58% claim this is the one gadget they just can’t live without.  Vacuum cleaners come a close second (46%) as a ‘must have’ gadget. Over a quarter (28%) own iPods and just under half (46%) have a Sat Nav device – possibly items that they would have lusted after in the 1980s.

Better connected
One of the key signs of a yuppie was a bulging filofax, a testament to their preoccupation with being busy and connected.  The RIAS report shows that, in 2010, the 50 to 65 year olds may have swapped traditional schmoozing and a champagne lifestyle for social networking, with over two in five (42%) of those online now on Twitter or Facebook, satisfying their desire to keep in touch.

Lives in a very big house in the country…
As expected, the overwhelming majority (77%) lived in urban and suburban environments 30 years ago, but now only 56% of 50-65 year olds live in similar locations, with one quarter now living and spending most of their time in the country.

Yuppie politics
With an election looming, political parties will be considering how best to engage the valuable yuppie of yesteryear vote.  Back in the 1980s, yuppies were said to be conservative on policies, and liberal on issues.  Will the Conservatives keep a hold over the key 50-65s group with their stance on issues like the environment or have they now the confidence to vote elsewhere and discard their 1980s loyalties?

A Tale of two generations: The Yuppie then and now

Janet Connor, Managing Director at RIAS comments: “It’s fascinating to see how the original ‘yuppies’ have come of age.  It appears that some things never change – they still value money and a good lifestyle – but now it’s good to see that they’re being prudent with their money and putting it into their retirement, paying off their mortgage and savings.

“This generation really have used their experience and driven personalities to set themselves up for a comfortable and enjoyable retirement. The days of schmoozing may be behind them, but with laptop in hand and Twitter accounts aplenty, they’re clearly not relaxing just yet, and finding the time to play hard!”

Social commentator Peter York added: “It’s great to see that the over 50s are obviously still thinking about money and success, and still contributing, but now in different ways.  As mentors and portfolio men and women, the research shows you just can’t keep a yuppie down.”

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Click here to download our full report

For more information about the range of products available from RIAS visit www.rias.co.uk

For more information or a copy of the report please contact Alex Kennedy or Laura Johnston at 77 on 020 7492 0977 alex.kennedy@77pr.co.uk and laura.johnston@77pr.co.uk

Notes to editors
¹ The RIAS ‘Yuppies of Yesteryear’ report surveyed over 1,000 50-65 year olds who would have been in their 20s and 30s in the heyday of the ‘yuppie’ to see how priorities have changed with regards to their careers, money, material possessions and living arrangements.

All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc.  Total sample size was 1074 adults aged 50 to 65. Fieldwork was undertaken between 30th March to 1st April 2010.  The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults aged 50 to 65.

² Source: ONS Population Projections, 2010.

About RIAS
RIAS was established in 1992 and is a specialist provider of insurance products for the over 50s age group.

Part of Fortis (Insurance UK), RIAS has a million motor, home and travel insurance customers, employs over 1,100 people across two UK sites, and is one of the UK’s fastest organically growing insurance intermediaries. RIAS negotiates with a panel of insurers to secure competitive, value for money products.

As a leading provider of award-winning personal and commercial lines insurance solutions in the UK, Fortis has a successful customer-centric strategy, founded on aligning its activities to how customers want to buy insurance, combined with delivering high quality products, manufactured at costs better than market norms.

Insuring in excess of 7 million customers and working with a range of partners, Fortis is recognised for delivering consistent and high-quality customer experiences. In 2008, its non-life profit before tax and interest was £76 million and its non-life GWP was £760 million.