High Goths: The New Subculture Driving the Next Paradigm Shift in Consumption

‘Tis the season to be gory. All things ghoulish are predictably filling up editorial pages of October issues. Supermarket shelves succumb to the dictate of the calendar, stocking up on pumpkins and trick-or-treats.

With their penchant for black colour and, some might say, spooky looks, goths are the go-to subculture for Halloween hype.

But what if black, was, well, the new black?

What if the latest impersonation of the goth scene had nothing to with the Whitby festival? This is the self-proclaimed ‘world’s premiere goth event’, which will be taking place over Halloween weekend in this quaint British town, due its association with Bram Stoker's novel Dracula.

Applying ‘the first to know’ innovation diffusion, a groundbreaking cyclical model for tracing how idiosyncratic ideas become the norm, this article will suggest that future solutions to societal problems could lie in the values of the emerging Transhuman Consumer – of which the new goth subculture is representative. Although these scenesters may appear ‘scary’, according to this model, the period 2024 – 2026 is marking a pivotal turning point, when their values, going beyond their striking looks, are fast gaining traction. 

The-First-to-Know Innovation Diffusion Model

Key to people (or ‘consumer’) research is the quality of respondents. A particular challenge is when planning future strategies, especially based on cultural insights. While some researchers still erroneously chase Gen Z to imply they are somehow ahead-of-the-curve, most practitioners recognise that there are other types that are key for understanding emerging trends. Terms routinely used here when recruiting participants for research projects are ‘experts’, ‘creative consumers’, ‘cutting-edgers’ and similar but being an expert in something doesn’t necessarily mean being au fait with emerging trends. What we really want is the Innovator.

Inspired by Everett Rogers’ seminal ‘innovations diffusion’, the-first-to-know provides a robust framework for future planning. It offers a new breed of cultural insights, from the embryo of movements, acting as a risk-alleviator.

The novelty of the-first-to-know model is precisely its focus on the Innovator. This is the first category on the curve, preceding the early Adopter.

One of the two main types of Innovators, Alphas are a fluid, global web of non-conformists. Notoriously difficult to reach, this small group creates great hype. They’re the style leaders.

There are four distinct categories of Alphas, positioned from an embryo of a new subcultural movement towards the Early Adopter. New movements spread through spreading word of mouth. The model’s messenger continuum captures this process.

High goths are the new Alphas.

Cool Cycle of Reinvention and the 7^th Year Itch

While the traditional innovations diffusion focuses on reaching critical mass, the- first-to-know model focuses on the cycle of change that is created by Innovators. Paradigm shifts in consumption, driven by Innovators, are cyclical and occur in stages over a decade’s cycle, starting in the 7th year of any decade, which is called a cool cycle of reinvention.

An ideological shift occurs when the new set of values overrides the values that had shaped the previous cool cycle, to trigger a paradigm shift in consumption. When the new turns into the status quo, the cool cycle begins all over again.

Each journey is a crossover process of new ideas from one grouping of adopters to another, which occurs in three phases that mirror one another: overground and underground.

The 7th year itch timeline can help marketers plan their strategies to be on trend among mainstream consumers while remaining alert to what’s bubbling up.

Why Now?

The current cool cycle (2007 – 2017/underground formation) and (2017 – 2027/ overground ‘mainstreamisation’) is driven by the New Consciousness Consumer. Premised on brands delivering not just functional and emotional benefits but also being accountable in terms of delivering social benefits, this is the era of corporate citizenship. It involves generating economic value while at the same time creating value for society, with social inclusivity and climate equity agendas becoming a requirement.

The year 2024 signalled the beginning of the downward curve on the ‘innovations diffusion’, with ‘greenwashing’ and ‘rainbow washing’ concerns growing.

By the same token, new, seemingly weird, ideas from the underground, are maturing. Carrying new authentic claims, they provide an alternative. As such, they will become appealing to early Adopters, further rendering ideas led by the previous cool cycle, irrelevant and dated, en route to overkill.

This is why now is the right time to explore what’s maturing from the underground to buck the downward trend.

‘Extreme Beauty’, the High Goths’ New Aesthetic Sensibility

Primarily influenced by the traditional goth scene, as their ideas started to spill over, high goths would also start reinterpreting Japanese influences (kawaii, manga, anime) and paganism. Modern paganism is an umbrella term that refers to growing interest in folkloric and ancient ritualistic traditions as well as emerging ceremonial practices, involving some kind of worship or spiritual element to reconnect with nature.

This combo gave rise to ‘extreme beauty’, a new aesthetic sensibility that superseded ‘beauty in decay’, the aesthetic sensibility of the Alphas from the previous cool cycle.

‘Extreme beauty’ is about merging the distinction between real and digital and breaking away from stereotypical notions of beauty. It is a celebration of uncensored expression in a provocative way, in order to highlight an alternative point of view.

The extremeness in aesthetics of the high goths suggests a sense of urgency in relation to tackling the problems and issues facing humanity. Their new values are the foundation of the new ideology, superseding that of the previous cool cycle. This values shift is unlocking the new Early Adopter.

The Transhuman Consumer

The Transhuman Consumer (THC) is the new Early Adopter, who is beginning to replace the New Consciousness Consumer (NCC).

This Transhuman Consumer’s ideology is a combination of high tech and low tech. The high tech element is about embracing the potential of Web 3 in decentralising power and giving individuals greater ownership and autonomy over their online life and beyond. The low-tech reflects the acute realisation among Alphas about the need to urgently do more to counter climate emergency, in new ways, imagining post-Anthropocene scenarios.

Reconsidering our hierarchical relationship with the planet and other species
lies at the foundation of the new paradigm shift that is driving the new cool cycle. This is coupled with a call to reconnect with each other as humans in a more magnanimous fashion.

Strategic Implications

Looking towards 2026, and with the 7^th year itch point nearing, consider the new cool cycle.

Inspired by the new aesthetic sensibilities, forward-thinking brands from fashion, beauty, media, music and hospitality sectors and personalities, ranging from FK Twigs to Madonna, have already embraced the high goths.

For those working in sectors aiming at the mainstream market, advisably, round off your strategies built on the New Consciousness Consumer. Beyond style fads, for foresights, dig deeper into the values within the Transhuman Consumer’s ideology according to the-first-to-know. Start enlisting Innovators in your innovation briefs. Look for real Innovators, the ones at pole position on the innovation curve, whose word-of-mouth matters. (The other type of Innovator intrinsic to the model are Mavericks, beyond the scope, here, but relevant to complete the value shift).

Be there or be square!