Forget old-school machismo – new research has found that Londoners believe it takes guts to get in touch with your soft side. 61% of us believe we need courage to be openly sensitive – with 15% of Londoners feeling too uncomfortable to show their softness at all.
The average Londoner only spends 3 hours per week doing ‘soft’ things (although that’s one more hour than the rest of the country), and 8% of us never do anything soft at all.
As a result, our favourite soft pleasures, including petting animals (no.6 on the list), listening to relaxing music (no.7), or even bubble baths (no.10), aren’t being proudly shared.
To help embolden the toughest of people to enjoy more of the soft life, IRN-BRU is bringing some unusual experiences to unexpected places, including London THIS THURSDAY.
A herd of alpacas will be available to pet in the heart of Southwark over lunchtime, at Marlborough Sports Gardens on Union Street.
It coincides with the roll-out of IRN-BRU Ice Cream, the brand’s softest serve yet and the first new permanent flavour in seven years to coincide with the iconic brand’s 125th anniversary. Other experiences taking place around the country include sound bathing in a high-intensity muscle gym in Manchester and yoga for construction workers on Glasgow’s Clydeside.
Kenny Nicholson, Director of Brand at IRN-BRU, said: “It’s not every day you can lower your cortisol with furry friends in the middle of the city. But it turns out that modern-day bravery doesn’t always show up in the most expected of places.
“From the study, it seems we could do with a few more Mr (and Ms) Softies: people who, even when they look hard as nails, are unafraid and unashamed to serve a little softness. Whether it’s a bath with candles, a spot of Tai Chi or feeding your lover grapes beside a roaring fire, we should all have the girders to enjoy what we want, when we want to.
“The introduction of Ice-Cream as a permanent part of the IRN-BRU family is a reminder from us that everyone has a soft, sweet side. And now it’s time to enjoy it.”