Jasmine Birtles – Financial Expert interview – First direct interviews financial expert Jasmine Birtles for its ‘Colourful Lives’ report

Jasmine Birtles of MoneyMagpie presents  her Financial Expert interview – First direct interviews financial expert Jasmine Birtles for its ‘Colourful Lives’ report

To mark its 21st birthday, first direct commissioned the Future Foundation to explore and champion the unique individuals who make Britain great.  The resulting ‘Colourful Lives’ report is a celebration of all that’s individual, quirky and just plain eccentric.

first direct Head of Marketing, Paul Say, said: “The research shows Brits are proud of their nation, with traditional customs and festivals such as cheese rolling, bog snorkelling and toe wrestling cited by 57 per cent as the main reason Britain is so eccentric. One in every 100 people in the UK is officially registered as a Jedi Knight – a statistic which proves Brits aren’t afraid to be irreverent even about such routine things as the Census.

“It’s because our customers are so colourful that first direct does banking in black and white. We wanted to get under the skin of these interesting characters to find out just what makes them tick.”

The next biggest driver of our intrinsic eccentricity is the class system (35 per cent) while a third (32 per cent) say it’s because Britain is not truly European. A quarter (24 per cent) think being an island fosters quirky characters and one in ten (20 per cent) credit the monarchy. Just three per cent associate wealth with eccentricity in modern society.

When it comes to breaking away from the norm, two thirds (62.5 per cent) of us believe Britain is the most free-spirited, creative and non-conformist nation of the top five Western European countries*.

The research predicts a continued trend of appreciating the peculiar and irreverent. Brits will increasingly be attracted to people and brands that are not afraid to express themselves in a personable, quirky manner – a manner which reflects the colourful nature and the intrinsically alternative mindset of contemporary Britain

Classy footwear

What we put around our feet is subject to as much fashion scrutiny as any other piece of clothing out there. Shoes have come a long way since they were first introduced and nowadays they come in various shapes and sizes. And not only that, they also come in different styles and different shoes are used for different occasions. Be it mens trainers or women’s heels, a lot of work and thought goes into manufacturing a modern shoe. It became an object of worship and something of an object of craft, worthy of praise and of media attention; an object that people basically collect and that became a symbol of wealth, style and grace.

Not too long ago shoes were made locally by shoemakers, and they would be better or worse depending on the skill of the craftsman. Different materials were common in different regions of the world and that influenced the local shoe manufacturing and the local trends. But, slowly, shoe fashion became a global event, accompanying the trend of other types of clothing. Different countries or designers took turns influencing the fashion of the times, but one thing remained, and that was the way of looking at the shoe as a fashion object, more than an object of daily use. And of course, with all of this shoes became the target of specific press, shoe only fashion shows, fashion shoe stores with trained professionals and, of course, the accompanying increase in the value and the ultimate price of shoes. 

And the widespread of the shoe market accompanied the latest trends and has reached the Internet. You would think that it would be the last place where you could sell a shoe, as different shoe sizes and, naturally, feet sizes were bound to cause some confusion in it. But resourceful and clever techniques used by several websites, along with a skilled customer support force, managed to find solutions for these problems and now the online shoe market is thriving.

Now you can buy mens trainers from Very.co.uk with as much security as you would buy them in your favorite brick and mortar store. And of course this helps with another issue: the price. Buying online, with all the reduced expenses to the company or the store involved, is usually a great degree cheaper than buying in a store that has to spend money on regular employees, rent and utilities, among others.

 

Spas for Men

Every woman has their own taste in men, but almost every woman will say that she likes a well groomed man. This doesn’t mean a metro sexual, but at least a man that cares enough about his appearance and hygiene to take care of himself. Regardless, there is no better way to relax and unwind from the stresses of everyday life like a day at the spa.

Wales Spa Days are a great way to have some time to yourself, and get away from the normal routine to relax. Whether you want to be pampered in a luxurious setting, or treat yourself while your significant other is doing the same, or just take some time out of a business trip to get away from the pressure of work, you can have the perfect experience in a spa. Whether its a regular routine, or something you have never considered until now, you won’t regret a day at the spa. There are a variety of treatments to take advantage of, so you can choose several or only the ones you are comfortable with. Nothing feels more like a vacation than a day at the spa.