New research out of the UK suggests that trends in childbearing and lifestyle choices are creating new opportunities for marketers-especially marketers of premium brands.

Over the past decade there has been a rise in the numbers of thirty-something mothers who are career-focused, cash rich and time-poor. These mothers are leading the rise in consumption of premium brands for pre-schoolers.

Yet it's not just the thirty-somethings, teenage mothers are also in the spotlight. In the UK teenage pregnancy is way up, and almost 90% of those mothers are unmarried. This group too follows the overall trend of increased consumption of premium brands.

While there are many differences between thirty-something and teenage mothers, including varying views on how best to bring up kids, common to both is the desire to show love through providing kids with the best material goods. The result of these recent trends is that kids have more consumer power than ever, even in the pre-school years-and, for certain, marketers are paying close attention.