Can cupcakes predict (or prompt) gentrification?

That's one issue BBC News Magazine looks at in their recent article "The Cupcake Revival:"

According to others, cupcakes are a clear cultural barometer. Academics in New York are constructing a map of emerging cupcake shops throughout the city. The theory is that these give a more accurate guide to gentrification than traditional demographic and housing surveys.

Nicola Twilley, of Edible Geography, believes "cupcake gentrification" could even be a cause of urban regeneration and not an effect.

"While I wouldn't argue that cupcakes can single-handedly cause a neighbourhood to gentrify, I think it's possible that they could contribute.

"The best agents for social change are virally popular and easily integrated into our daily lives - there's no doubt that cupcakes fit that bill. You could create an investment fund that would back local cupcake entrepreneurs who wanted to set up shop in depressed neighbourhoods."

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