There are more than 1.6 billion Muslims in the world, two-thirds of them under 30. Paying attention? Shelina Janmohamed thinks you should be. Meet Generation M, a multilingual, multicultural, teched-up megamarket. This increasingly powerful group is her target market at Ogilvy Noor, a Muslim-focused branch of the branding giant Ogilvy & Mather – “mainstream” big business, paying attention. Although the spending power of Generation M varies widely, as a group they are too big to ignore, culturally or economically. Exploring the importance of ethical business, transparent financial dealings and freshly prepared food, Janmohamed makes it easy to see how fundamental tenets of the Muslim faith are in line with the trends that move markets and shape our lives. Ultimately, “Muslim” is as useless a descriptor as “Christian”, and “generation” is equally hard to define, but herein lies the fascination of Generation M, as Janmohamed balances the many attitudes and manifestations of Islam and its people. Take this thought-provoking primer into your next uninspired, generality-laden pub-table debate about the Muslim world and see if you can’t bring the conversation up to date.
