MalayMail-Sept 22
Growing religious observance — fueled by government policies implemented to promote sectors such as halal foods and Islamic banking, as well as political parties courting Muslim votes — has reshaped the Muslim consumer landscape in Malaysia and its neighboring countries in merely a single generation, a report has indicated.
Because of this, the report, penned by Wunderman Thompson Intelligence, in collaboration with VMLY&R Malaysia’s Muslim Intel Lab titled “The New Muslim Consumer: How Rising Observance is Reshaping the Consumer Landscape in South-east Asia and Beyond”, showed that 33 per cent of its respondents say they are more observant of their faith compared to their parents at their age. The report said that prior to this, Muslim-influenced consumerism would only encompass food — primarily the avoidance of pork and alcohol — but has now expanded to include fashion, banks, travel, education, as well as personal spending, investment and donations, leading to the emergence of modest fashion brands, Shariah-compliant banks, hijabi-only hair salons, as well as halal dim sum restaurants. It also noted that this urbanization of Islam has prompted the growth of Islamic stamps of approval, such as halal certification for products or services. Hew Wai Weng, a research fellow at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) who studies the Muslim middle class in Malaysia and Indonesia, dubbed this “liquid Islamism”, a riff on the concept of “liquid modernity” which describes constant change within contemporary society. Based on this, the report found that Islam has become a significant part of daily life, with 91 per cent of respondents saying that having a strong relationship with Allah is very important, on par with health care and followed closely by family, at 89 per cent. The report also stated that men are significantly more likely than women to prioritize marriage, children and career, while women are significantly more likely to place importance on having new experiences and experiences that are different from their parents, as well as travel. Read more at: https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2022/09/22/survey-growing-religious-observance-reshaping-consumer-landscape-in-malaysia-se-asia/29323
