Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- Top takeaways
- Overview of the gender landscape
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- Figure 1: Perception of gender – by LGBTQ+ identity, by generation, September 2020
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- Figure 2: Gender expansion in social circles – by LGBTQ+ identity, by generation, September 2020
- Challenges
- Consumers feel limited by gender norms
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- Figure 3: Eliminating gender norms – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
- Employees want more gender diversity training
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- Figure 4: Gender education in the workplace – by generation, September 2020
- Opportunities
- Expanding identification options
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- Figure 5: Government ID – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
- Gender-neutral and gender-fluid products
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- Figure 6: Personal care items – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
The Gender Landscape – Key Takeaways
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- The gender spectrum model is increasingly widespread and accepted
- Gender-expansive identity and expression is more common among Gen Z and LGBTQ+ adults
- Gender-expansive identities are more common than one would think
The Gender Landscape
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- Defining sex and gender
- Seeing gender as a spectrum is becoming mainstream philosophy
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- Figure 7: Perception of gender – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
- Women and younger generations are more likely to believe gender is a spectrum
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- Figure 8: Perception of gender – by generation, September 2020
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- Figure 9: Perception of gender – by gender, September 2020
- Among LGBTQ+ adults, the gender spectrum is less embraced by men and transgender adults
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- Figure 10: Perception of gender – by gender and transgender identity, September 2020
- Transgender identity versus non-binary identity
- Gender-expansive identity is more common among the LGBTQ+ population
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- Figure 11: Gender identity – by LGBTQ+ identification and transgender identity, September 2020
- LGBTQ+ adults also see gender expression as more nuanced and fluid
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- Figure 12: Gender expression – by gender, by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
- Figure 13: Gender expression – by gender, by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
- Gen Z and Millennial LGBTQ+ adults are more likely to personally embrace gender-expansive expression
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- Figure 14: Gender expression – by LGBTQ+ population, by generation, September 2020
- Figure 15: Gender expression – by total population, by generation, September 2020
Prevalence of Gender-expansive Identities
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- Nearly one in five Americans know someone who uses gender-neutral pronouns or identifies as non-binary
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- Figure 16: Gender expansion in social circles – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
- Younger generations are more likely to know someone who identifies as non-binary
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- Figure 17: Gender expansion in social circles – by generation, September 2020
- Figure 18: Gender expansion in social circles – by generation, September 2020
- Americans are unsure if the use of gender-neutral pronouns will be an enduring trend
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- Figure 19: Gender-neutral pronouns – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
- Whether or not gender-neutral pronouns are a fleeting fad, most Americans feel government IDs should be more gender inclusive
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- Figure 20: Government ID – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
The Consumer – Key Takeaways
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- Gender is a critical part of a person’s identity
- Traditional gender roles remain prevalent and frustrating
- Gender-neutral, gender-fluid and gender-bending products are gaining attention and appeal
- Workplace training on gender-expansive identities is lacking and desired
Role of Gender Identity
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- Gender is an important part of personal identity, for both the general population and LGBTQ+ adults
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- Figure 21: Role of gender – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
- The general population is more likely to be offended by misgendering than LGBTQ+ adults
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- Figure 22: Being misgendered – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
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- Figure 23: Gender pronouns and identification – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
- Sharing pronouns is also more common among young, urban-dwelling adults
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- Figure 24: Gender pronouns – by generation and location type, September 2020
- Not knowing someone else’s gender identity is less of a concern
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- Figure 25: Recognizing gender – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
Gender Roles and Society
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- Nearly half of LGBTQ+ adults feel limited by gender norms
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- Figure 26: Gender norms – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
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- Figure 27: Gender norms – by sexual orientation and transgender identity, September 2020
- Younger generations are more impacted by the limits of gender norms
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- Figure 28: Gender norms – by generation, September 2020
- Men feel more limited by gender norms than one might think
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- Figure 29: Gender norms – by gender, September 2020
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- Figure 30: Feminine traits – by gender, September 2020
- The majority of people feel gender norms should be eliminated
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- Figure 31: Eliminating gender norms – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
Gender and Brands
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- Clothing and personal care product purchases are the most likely to be influenced by consumers’ gender identity
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- Figure 32: Gendered products – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
- Nearly half of LGBTQ+ adults experiment with personal care products designed for a different gender
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- Figure 33: Personal care items – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
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- Figure 34: We Are Fluide, Fluide Universal Gloss, September 2020
- Interest in experimenting and mixing gendered personal care items increases with younger generations
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- Figure 35: BiC Us razor, June 2020
- Figure 36: Personal care items – by generation, September 2020
- Gender bending has noteworthy interest among the general population
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- Figure 37: Gender bending – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
- Figure 38: Decades of gender-bending fashion of the MFA Boston
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- Figure 39: Billie Eilish’s fluid gender expression
- Figure 40: Gender bending – by gender, September 2020
- Gender bending is more of interest among younger generation
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- Figure 41: Gender bending – by generation, September 2020
- Unisex clothes for adults is more niche, but unisex clothes for children has more mass appeal
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- Figure 42: Unisex clothing – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
- Gender equity across products is desired by all
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- Figure 43: Brand and gender-neutral products – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
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- Figure 44: Always removes Venus female symbol from packaging, October 2019
Gender and the Workplace
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- Workplace diversity training on gender identity and expression is not widespread
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- Figure 45: Workplace training – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
- Workplace inclusivity is noticed, but not by all
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- Figure 46: Workplace inclusivity – by LGBTQ+ identity, September 2020
- Despite inclusivity efforts, a quarter of LGBTQ+ adults are not comfortable fully expressing their gender identity at work
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- Figure 47: Comfort at work – by gender, LGBTQ+ identity and transgender identity, September 2020
- Gender inclusivity efforts become more accepted and embraced among younger generations
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- Figure 48: Gender education in the workplace – by generation, September 2020
Companies and Brands – Key Takeaways
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- Appealing to consumers’ Identity, Rights and Surroundings
Mintel Trend Drivers
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- Identity
- Rights
- Surroundings
Competitive Strategies
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- Supporting consumers’ personal self-expression
- Category example: beauty and personal care
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- Figure 49: Faculty Instagram post, September 2020
- Category example: home fitness
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- Figure 50: Peloton Instagram post, June 2020
- Breaking down gender stereotypes
- Category example: AI and smart technology
- Category example: retail
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- Figure 51: For those brave enough to defy norms
- Advocating for gender-inclusive representation
- Category example: eSports
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- Figure 52: Let’s change the game together
- Category example: marketing and advertising
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- Figure 53: The Gender Spectrum Collection
Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
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- Data sources
- Consumer survey data
- Consumer qualitative research
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
- Terms
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