Crabmen are back, and gay girls are out, says Kingrak Ingkawat, who penned a thesis five years ago on lifestyle, purchasing behaviour and media exposure of gays in Bangkok.
Now creative director for JWT Thailand, Kingrak says gays are drawn to body-building as they associate it with a healthy lifestyle. Accordingly, the well-built look is also back in fashion, while the trend for slight, girlie-looking boys is now regarded as old hat.
Thai gays have a name for the body-building types: kam poo (ก้ามปู), which means crab pincers. You know the kind of crabs I mean: the ones with the huge claws in front, which look much bigger than their body. Body-builders with tiny heads but huge muscly arms which hang down like dumb-bells - it's the same look.
Kingrak's thesis divided gays into six groups: the Homey Gay Lifestyle, Night Going Gay Lifestyle, Obviously Gay Lifestyle, Trendy Gay Lifestyle, Conservative Gay Lifestyle, and Healthy Gay Lifestyle.
Gays in the first group stick close to home, are into meditation and planting trees. They don't go out much, and are not interested in fashion.
Nightlife gays like smoking, drinking, and drugs, believe anything from the West is a Good Thing, and tend to look down on things Thai. They are most likely to buy goods associated with entertainment and fashion.
The third group, obviously gay, dress outrageously, get involved in gay activities, like gambling, and are into fashion and entertainment.
The next group, trendy gays, are into gadgets, particularly the latest communications devices.
Conservative gays do not believe in flaunting their gayness, as the freedom of gays in Thai society is still circumscribed. They are into serious things like saving, and have a high awareness of gay issues such as Aids.
Healthy gays are into exercise, sports, and the gym, to keep their bodies looking good. They avoid fatty food, are into nutrition, and like overseas travel. They are more interested in health issues and travel than other groups.
Kingrak's thesis found that most gays in Bangkok fall into the conservative and trendy categories - though they usually adopt a combination of lifestyle features across categories, rather than fitting neatly into one box or another.
His thesis for Chulalongkorn University was based on a sample of 300 gays. For an update, Business Thai newspaper asked Kingrak what was in, and what was out with Bangkok gays today.
'These days the latest trend is to lead a healthy lifestyle. This group has its own slang to describe this kind of man: 'kam poo', 'act man', or 'macho man'. These are the muscly types who wear tight-fitting T-shirts to show off their bodies. As far as the girly-types are concerned, or the ones who like to dress as girls, they have now fallen out of fashion,' he said.
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