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Milk tea isn’t just a drink. It is a social signal. Samgyupsal isn’t just a meal — it has become a weekend ritual.

Few food trends have achieved what these did: mass appeal across socioeconomic classes, viral traction across platforms, and real estate-level impact in malls and high streets nationwide. Their success offers a blueprint for how food fads evolve into full-fledged consumer movements in the Philippines, driven by youth culture, social validation, and the pursuit of immersive, shareable experiences.

With over half the population under 30, Filipino consumers aren’t just early adopters; they’re active trendsetters. Food isn’t simply nourishment; it’s identity, entertainment, and currency for connection. Whether it’s a TikTok-worthy bite or a heritage dish reimagined for a new generation, the choices Filipinos make at the table are deeply intertwined with how they see themselves and the world.

For F&B brands operating in this space, understanding what drives these choices means tapping into a uniquely layered market – one where Western influences blend with local pride, and novelty only sticks when it aligns with culture, context, and community.

Fusion Finds Its Filipino Soul

Restaurants across Metro Manila are rewriting the rulebook for Filipino cuisine. A new wave of chefs is blending local comfort food with global influences – turning kare-kare into curry bowls, transforming adobo into bao buns, and giving sinigang a Japanese ramen twist. These aren’t gimmicks; they’re calculated plays to tap into the Filipino craving for novelty without abandoning familiarity.

This approach appeals to a generation raised on K-pop and content algorithms. Diners want flavour, but they also want narrative – a dish that photographs well and tells a story. Fusion provides both. Sinigang is reinvented with beef short rib and watermelon at spots like Manam Comfort Filipino, offering a playful yet rooted take on the classic. Sarsa Kitchen + Bar builds on Negrense traditions but packages them with a contemporary edge, perfect for the urban millennial crowd.

F&B groups are taking notice. Mid-scale franchises are testing bolder menus inspired by these high-concept eateries, hoping to scale trend-led items before they hit saturation. With younger diners using food discovery as entertainment, fusion isn’t fringe – it’s a fast-moving commercial opportunity.

The Rise of Regional Ingredients

The mainstream Filipino menu is undergoing a quiet revolution – and it’s being led by ingredients once considered too obscure, too rural, or too slow to scale. Diners are now seeking depth: flavours that feel earned, ingredients that come with provenance, and dishes that tell regional stories.

Items like batuan, pili nuts, tabon-tabon, and taba ng talangka are moving from weekend palengke hauls to chef specials and curated tasting menus. Adlai, once a heritage grain, now appears in health-forward bowls and upscale rice alternatives. These ingredients aren’t just rich in flavour; they’re signalling exclusivity, craftsmanship, and cultural pride.

Restaurants like Toyo Eatery and Locavore have championed this movement by reintroducing ancestral ingredients to urban diners and building menus that are proudly Filipino but globally competitive. For F&B groups, this opens a path to elevating brand storytelling – whether through seasonal LTOs (limited-time offers), regionally inspired menu capsules, or direct sourcing partnerships with local farmers.

The shift isn’t about going backwards – it’s about building forward with authenticity. As Filipino consumers increasingly equate food choices with values, using regional and artisanal ingredients is a culinary and commercial advantage.

Plant-Based and Flexitarian

Meat may still dominate the Filipino plate, but the momentum behind plant-forward eating is growing – not as a fringe lifestyle but as a mainstream shift among millennials and Gen Z. This shift isn’t driven by ideology alone; it’s about wellness, affordability, and the increasing accessibility of meat alternatives in urban centres.

Traditional dishes are being reformatted for a new generation: laing without bagoong, kare-kare with jackfruit, sisig with tofu and mushrooms. Homegrown spots like Green Bar in Makati and The Wholesome Table in BGC have found success by blending comfort food aesthetics with health-forward menus. Their dishes don’t preach – they sell through flavor, familiarity, and lifestyle branding.

There’s a gap in the casual dining space for restaurant groups where plant-based menus are still treated as secondary. Introducing flexitarian lines – not full vegan menus, but deliberate plant-forward heroes – is a low-risk, high-upside way to meet the rising demand. It also signals alignment with values like sustainability, something younger consumers are rewarding with loyalty and spending.

What once felt like a niche segment is now a whitespace for innovation. And in a country where vegetables have always been part of the table, rethinking them for modern preferences is a return, not a departure.

Street Food 2.0 – Elevated and Instagrammable

Filipino street food has always been bold, flavorful, and accessible, but it’s never been this photogenic. What used to be served from pushcarts and roadside grills is now being reimagined for curated food halls, food parks, and Gen Z-focused dining places.

Think kwek-kwek with truffle aioli, isaw glazed in honey sriracha, or balut turned into a small-plate delicacy with sinamak foam. Brands like Boy Isaw and Mang Larry’s Isawan have helped normalise street food in structured retail settings, while new concepts like IhawJuan lean into design-forward booths, premium packaging, and consistent flavour control.

This trend thrives on nostalgia wrapped in novelty. It appeals to Filipino diners’ emotional connection to childhood and street culture while meeting modern expectations for hygiene, branding, and presentation. On TikTok and Instagram, street food with a twist is shareable gold.

For restaurant groups, the opportunity lies in format innovation: bite-sized, affordable, customizable items that fit both dine-in and grab-and-go formats. It’s also a chance to localise at scale, with regional street food variants offering ready-made menu expansion paths across the country.

Ancestral Filipino Cooking Techniques with A Modern Flair

Filipino chefs are reaching into the past not to replicate it but to reinterpret it. Slow, regional methods like pinaupong manok, pinais, kinilaw, tinapa, and kulawo are being reintroduced in refined forms, framed less as throwbacks and more as culinary heritage elevated for today’s palate.

At restaurants like Balay Dako in Tagaytay and Café Juanita in Pasig, long-held techniques are presented with care, often paired with storytelling that links each dish to family tradition or regional history. The appeal isn’t just authenticity – it’s depth. For consumers burned out by over-engineered food fads, these dishes offer a sense of grounding and meaning.

What was once seen as slow and provincial now feels premium. The tactile nature of these cooking methods – from banana-leaf wrapping to open-fire grilling – offers rich sensory experiences, ideal for diners seeking more than just taste.

For restaurant groups, this movement is an opportunity to differentiate themselves. Ancestral techniques lend themselves to seasonal menus, chef’s specials, and content-rich brand narratives. They also create space for regional partnerships and experiential formats, such as heritage dining nights or interactive prep counters. Tradition isn’t the opposite of innovation – it’s becoming its most compelling form in the Filipino market.

Filipino dining is not just about what’s on the plate – it’s a statement of identity, intent, and influence. As tastes evolve and boundaries blur between tradition and trend, the winning brands will move beyond imitation and lean into insight, capturing the cultural undercurrent driving the next wave of consumption.

Market research is your edge if you’re looking to tap into the next wave of Filipino food trends with confidence. From concept testing and menu optimisation to understanding shifting consumer behaviours across regions and generations, our team delivers the insights you need to make bold, informed decisions. Let’s uncover what’s next – together.

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For decades, pursuing a prestigious degree meant a one-way ticket to the West. The United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia stood as the undisputed giants of international education, drawing millions of students eager to secure world-class credentials and global career opportunities. But the equation is shifting.

A growing number of students are rethinking the cost-benefit ratio of traditional Western degrees. Skyrocketing tuition fees, tightening visa policies, and economic uncertainty are forcing families to reassess whether the promise of a Western education still justifies the financial and bureaucratic burden. Meanwhile, Asia and the Middle East are rewriting the playbook.

Nowhere is this transformation more pronounced than in Singapore, an emerging education powerhouse that blends academic excellence with career mobility. With top-ranked universities, a thriving business ecosystem, and student-friendly visa policies, Singapore is taking the lead in challenging Western dominance. Alongside China and the UAE, it represents a new breed of global education hubs, offering a compelling mix of affordability, industry integration, and forward-thinking policies that are reshaping the future of overseas education.

As competition heats up, universities, policymakers, and brands that cater to international students must rethink their strategies. The question is no longer just where students want to study – but why they are making the choices they do.

The Changing Cost-Benefit Equation

Higher education has long been a high-stakes investment. For many international students, the promise of a Western degree once justified the steep price tag. But with tuition fees in the US, UK, Canada, and Australia climbing to unsustainable levels, students and their families scrutinise the return on investment like never before.

In the US, international students at public universities pay an average of $25,000 to $45,000 per year, while private institutions often exceed $50,000, excluding accommodation, healthcare, and living expenses. In the UK, tuition for international students at top universities can soar past £40,000 ($48,000) per year, with no government-imposed caps. Australia, long favoured for its post-graduation work opportunities, is now grappling with rising tuition, housing shortages, and surging living costs, making it an increasingly expensive choice.

Enter Singapore, China, and the UAE – education hubs delivering world-class degrees at a fraction of the cost. Singapore’s National University of Singapore (NUS) and Nanyang Technological University (NTU) consistently rank among the world’s top institutions, yet tuition for international students remains significantly lower than Ivy League counterparts. Scholarships, tuition grants, and government-backed funding programs make higher education in Singapore accessible and financially strategic.

In China, universities like Tsinghua and Peking have climbed global rankings, while the Chinese government’s Belt and Road scholarships actively attract students from Africa, South Asia, and beyond. The UAE, home to branch campuses of NYU, Sorbonne, and London Business School, has positioned itself as a high-quality, English-language alternative with generous government incentives for international students.

As education costs in the West continue to rise, emerging destinations capitalise on the shift, offering students a degree without decades of debt.

Policy Shifts and Post-Graduation Pathways

For years, a Western degree came with an unspoken promise – better job prospects and a pathway to residency. That promise remains intact for many, but shifting immigration policies make it harder for international graduates to stay and work.

The United States has seen a rise in international enrollments, largely fueled by a 35% surge in Indian students, making them the largest international student group. While the US remains a dominant player, visa uncertainties and work restrictions discourage students looking for long-term career stability. The H-1B visa process remains a bottleneck, with thousands of applicants vying for limited approvals, leaving many graduates in limbo.

In the United Kingdom, strong international enrollments have been driven by reintroducing the two-year post-study work visa. However, the government is now considering stricter immigration rules, requiring foreign graduates to secure graduate-level jobs to remain in the country. If implemented, this could impact future enrollment growth, particularly among students seeking greater flexibility in post-study employment.

Meanwhile, Singapore is capitalising on these uncertainties. Unlike Western nations tightening post-study work rules, Singapore has designed a system that encourages international graduates to stay and contribute to its economy. The Employment Pass (EP) and Work Holiday Pass (WHP) offer clear pathways for students from Singaporean universities to transition into the workforce, with government-backed programs actively matching talent with in-demand industries.

China and the UAE are adopting similar strategies. China’s streamlined visa policies allow international graduates to enter its booming technology, finance, and manufacturing sectors more easily. The UAE’s long-term visa programs, including the Golden Visa, offer foreign graduates a 10-year residency option without employer sponsorship, making it an attractive alternative to the rigid visa pathways in the West.

While US and UK universities continue to attract students, the future is uncertain. As governments debate tighter immigration laws, new education hubs actively seek international talent, proving that higher education can lead directly to job opportunities, not just academic knowledge.

The Appeal of Regional Job Markets

A degree is no longer just about prestige; it’s about where it leads. For international students, post-graduation employment prospects are as crucial as the quality of education itself. Once seen as the gold standard for job opportunities, Western economies face rising unemployment, labour market saturation, and increasingly complex work visa requirements. In contrast, emerging education hubs are positioning themselves as direct gateways to thriving regional job markets.

Singapore has perfected this model. As a global financial and technology hub, it offers international graduates seamless entry into industries ranging from fintech and artificial intelligence to biomedical sciences and logistics and government-backed programs such as the Global Investor Program and Tech.Pass encourage skilled professionals to remain in the country, reinforcing Singapore’s reputation as an education destination that delivers on employability.

China’s rapid economic expansion has also turned its job market into a magnet for international talent. With companies like Huawei, Tencent, and Alibaba aggressively recruiting global professionals, demand for multilingual and culturally agile graduates is soaring. The UAE, leveraging its status as a business and innovation hub, attracts students looking to enter sectors like renewable energy, aviation, and financial services.

In contrast, graduates in Western nations face mounting challenges. The UK job market remains fiercely competitive, with international students often struggling to secure employer sponsorship. In the US, the H-1B visa process remains a bottleneck, with thousands of applicants vying for a limited number of approvals.

As global talent pipelines shift, students are making decisions based not only on the quality of education but on the likelihood of landing a job in a fast-growing economy. Emerging hubs aren’t just offering degrees – they’re offering futures.

Academic Excellence Beyond the West

Western universities have been the undisputed leaders in global education rankings for decades. But as higher education landscapes evolve, institutions in Asia and the Middle East are rapidly closing the gap. Fueled by aggressive government investment, industry collaboration, and cutting-edge research, these emerging education hubs prove that academic excellence is no longer exclusive to the West.

Singapore stands at the forefront of this shift. The National University of Singapore (NUS) and Nanyang Technological University (NTU) consistently rank among the world’s top universities, surpassing many traditional Western institutions in research output and employer reputation. With strong ties to global corporations, these universities offer curricula that blend academic rigour with real-world application – an approach that has made Singapore a magnet for students seeking both knowledge and career mobility.

China is playing a similar game, with institutions like Tsinghua University and Peking University rising rapidly in international rankings. The Chinese government has poured billions into initiatives such as Project 985 and Double First-Class, elevating its universities into globally competitive research powerhouses. Breakthroughs in AI, quantum computing, and biotech are placing Chinese institutions at the cutting edge of innovation, making them increasingly attractive to students seeking access to world-class research facilities.

The UAE is taking a different approach, positioning itself as a global education hub through international partnerships. Dubai and Abu Dhabi host branch campuses of top Western universities, including NYU, Sorbonne, and MIT, offering students a Western-style education at a lower cost and with access to the region’s booming job market.

As emerging hubs climb the academic ranks, Western universities face a stark reality: prestige alone is no longer enough. The future of higher education belongs to institutions that can deliver both academic excellence and a direct pathway to global career opportunities.

Xiamen University offers a compelling example of how Chinese institutions attract international students by expanding beyond national borders. Its success underscores the growing appeal of Asian universities in global higher education.

Case Study: How Xiamen University Became a Magnet for International Students

Image Credit: Nature

Background

Founded in 1921, Xiamen University (XMU) has long been a powerhouse of higher education in China. While initially attracting students from Southeast Asian Chinese communities, XMU sought to expand its global presence and position itself as a leading destination for international students. By the early 2010s, with China’s growing influence in global education, the university recognised an opportunity to reach a broader audience by extending its footprint beyond its home country.

Strategies

Establishing an International Campus – In 2015, XMU launched Xiamen University Malaysia (XMUM), making history as the first large-scale overseas branch of a Chinese university. This strategic move placed XMU at the heart of Southeast Asia, where demand for internationally recognised degrees was rising.
Building Global Partnerships – The university strengthened collaborations with over 300 universities worldwide, increasing its appeal to international students and integrating more exchange programs.
Leveraging Cultural Soft Power – XMU expanded its global outreach through 16 Confucius Institutes across 13 countries, promoting Chinese language and culture, which attracted students interested in China’s economic and educational rise.
Offering Competitive Tuition and Scholarships – Compared to Western institutions, XMU positioned itself as a high-quality, cost-effective alternative, with tuition significantly lower than universities in the US, UK, and Australia. Government-backed scholarships further incentivised international enrollment.

Outcomes

Rapid Enrollment Growth – XMUM now hosts thousands of international students, making it a major higher education hub in Malaysia. XMU’s main campus in China has also seen rising international applications.
Stronger Regional Influence – By planting its flag in Malaysia, XMU increased China’s educational reach in Southeast Asia, providing local students with access to Chinese-style education without relocating to China.
A Sustainable Pipeline for Talent – The university’s emphasis on cross-border collaboration and industry integration has created direct pathways for students to enter China’s booming economy, particularly in technology and finance.

By strategically expanding beyond China’s borders, Xiamen University has redefined how Chinese institutions attract international students. Its success underscores a growing trend – students are looking beyond the West for globally relevant, cost-effective, and career-driven education. As competition in international higher education intensifies, XMU’s approach offers a playbook for universities seeking to adapt to this shifting landscape.

Cultural and Lifestyle Factors

Education is more than just academics. It’s an immersive experience shaped by culture, environment, and quality of life. For decades, students viewed Western countries as the ultimate destinations for international exposure. But as the cost of living in cities like London, New York, and Sydney skyrockets, students are reconsidering where they can thrive academically and personally.

Singapore has become a top choice for students seeking a balance between global connectivity and cultural familiarity. As one of the world’s safest and most efficient cities, it offers a seamless experience for international students. English is the primary language of instruction, and the country’s status as a melting pot of Asian and Western influences makes cultural adaptation easier. With a modern infrastructure, world-class public transport, and a strong emphasis on quality of life, Singapore offers the many advantages of Western cities – without the same financial burden.

China’s appeal lies in its sheer scale and economic power. Cities like Shanghai and Beijing are global business hubs, offering students exposure to a rapidly growing economy. Universities have also introduced more English-language programs, making education more accessible to international students. However, cultural differences and language barriers can still pose challenges for those unfamiliar with the region.

The UAE, particularly Dubai and Abu Dhabi, is emerging as an attractive alternative for students looking for a cosmopolitan lifestyle with strong job market integration. With a significant expatriate population, a thriving business ecosystem, and branch campuses of top Western universities, the country provides a high-standard education with fewer cultural barriers than some Asian destinations.

As students weigh their options, the decision is no longer just about where they can get the best degree; it’s about where they can build a future. Emerging education hubs prove that world-class learning experiences don’t have to come with the financial strain and cultural adjustment challenges often associated with Western universities.

The Future of Global Education Mobility

International education is undergoing a rapid transformation. Students weigh their options differently, prioritising affordability, job prospects, and policy stability over institutional prestige. Universities and governments that fail to adapt risk losing their global appeal.

Singapore is setting the pace. Its universities integrate AI-driven learning with industry collaborations, ensuring graduates are workforce-ready. Strategic alliances with institutions like MIT and Imperial College London further cement its status as an education hub with real-world impact.

China is leveraging its technological dominance to reshape academia. Personalised AI learning, blockchain-based credentials, and virtual classrooms are becoming standard. With aggressive international recruitment and rising global rankings, Chinese universities are drawing students once bound for the West.

The UAE is taking a different route, positioning itself as a transnational education hub. By hosting top Western universities and embedding research and innovation into its academic framework, it is creating a direct pipeline from study to employment in high-growth industries.

Meanwhile, Western institutions face mounting challenges. Rising tuition costs, visa hurdles, and uncertain post-study work opportunities force students to reconsider traditional destinations. The US and UK still attract strong international enrollments, but growth is driven by specific demographics – primarily Indian students in the US – while immigration policy debates threaten long-term stability.

The power dynamics in global education are shifting. Emerging hubs offer a compelling alternative: lower costs, stronger career pathways, and policies that welcome international talent. The future will belong to the nations and institutions that recognise this new reality and evolve with it.

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The fastest way to read the economy might be through a grocery receipt.

In the United States, a staple as simple as frozen pizza has become a financial strategy, signalling how households manage cost, comfort, and consistency.

And the US isn’t alone. Across markets, pantry staples are doubling as economic sensors. In the UK, a jump in baked bean and private-label ready meal sales mirrors cost-of-living anxiety. In Japan, instant noodles remain resilient despite price hikes, especially premium options. In China, frozen dumplings are no longer seasonal but weekday staples. Each reflects how consumers behave when their budgets are under pressure.

For brands, these patterns aren’t background noise. They’re forecasting tools. The staples consumers cling to during disruption are often early indicators of more profound shifts in sentiment and strategy.

The psychology behind food choices

When financial stress sets in, consumers don’t just look for cheaper options; they look for control. Food becomes a tool to reclaim routine, reduce effort, and preserve small pleasures. In inflationary periods, what matters isn’t just price. It’s perceived value.

Today’s shoppers are making what behavioural economists call satisfying decisions: good-enough choices that balance budget, emotion, and effort. That explains the rise of “premiumised basics.” In Japan, consumers choose upscale instant ramen precisely because inflation makes dining out less accessible, and these products offer the comfort and experience of a restaurant meal at home. A frozen pizza or store-brand ready meal isn’t just a shortcut; it’s a psychological release valve.

Aggregated across millions of carts, these choices offer powerful signals. Brands that can spot the patterns early and build for them gain an edge.

Frozen pizza and the power of low-effort indulgence

In the US, frozen pizza has moved from the edge of the freezer to the centre of the meal plan. Sales reached $7.0 billion in 2024, reflecting growing demand for foods that balance indulgence and utility.

The pandemic normalised at-home dining, and inflation extended the habit. Frozen pizza delivers more than calories: it’s familiar, flexible, and low-friction. It substitutes for takeout, satisfies a group, and feels like a treat without requiring cooking skills. Consumers aren’t just trading down; they’re trading differently.

That shift has created space for brands like Screamin’ Sicilian and California Pizza Kitchen to position frozen products as restaurant-quality. Clear packaging, upscale branding, and perceived authenticity all signal that compromise isn’t necessary.

Evaluate your portfolio by the effort-to-satisfaction ratio. Consumers gravitate toward products that offer fast prep, emotional payoff, and cost consistency. Frozen pizza’s success shows how categories that meet these criteria outperform even in volatile markets.

UK shoppers trade brands for value

Baked beans have long been a UK staple, but recent sales data tells a deeper story.

In 2023, total baked bean sales rose 2.5%, but Heinz saw a 5.1% decline. Private labels surged, with Euroshopper and others gaining share. The shift is primarily driven by price sensitivity. As grocery bills rise, shoppers increasingly trade down to store-brand or value-tier options that offer similar taste and portion sizes at significantly lower prices. Loyalty to the category remains, but brand allegiance weakens when meaningful differentiation doesn’t match premium pricing.

The same is playing out in chilled ready meals. Tesco and Sainsbury’s expanded their value lines, and consumers responded. These aren’t subpar options as packaging, taste, and positioning have all improved. The new trade-down doesn’t feel like a sacrifice.

Legacy brands need to reassess elasticity. When brand loyalty erodes under pricing pressure, winning back market share means redefining value, not just dropping price. Functional improvements and narrative clarity are now essential to justify a premium.

Japan’s affordable upgrades

According to The Guardian, the price of instant ramen increased 20% over the past two years, but consumption remained high.

In Japan, inflation hasn’t dented demand for instant noodles. Nissin raised prices, yet consumption held steady. More surprising: it’s the premium SKUs that are growing fastest.

Consumers are seeking quality within constrained budgets. The appeal isn’t just cost; it’s comfort and cultural continuity. A bowl of gourmet-style ramen at home replaces an expensive lunch out. The transaction becomes emotional as much as practical.

Affordable premiumization is a long-term play. Consumers will spend a little more if the return feels meaningful. That means elevating basics, through taste, story, or packaging, to deliver a perceived upgrade without a price shock.

China’s modernised tradition

Frozen dumplings have become a year-round staple in Chinese households. Once reserved for holidays or family occasions, they’re now an everyday solution for time-strapped urban consumers. In 2024, the market reached $6.86 billion, with younger buyers, balancing long hours and shrinking leisure time, driving much of the demand.

This isn’t convenience displacing tradition; it’s adapting to new consumption habits. Frozen dumplings retain cultural relevance while offering speed, consistency, and modern formats.

Culturally rooted convenience products can unlock mass-market growth when paired with modern positioning. The key is to evolve the format and accessibility without stripping away the story.

India and the Philippines: Time-saving staples under strain

According to Future Market Insights, the ready-to-mix food market in India reached $440 million in 2023 and is projected to grow to $1.75 billion by 2033. Snacks and mixes form a dual growth engine, as consumers manage rising costs and time poverty.

These products aren’t replacing traditional meals; they’re reshaping them. Dosa batter and spice blends offer cultural authenticity without daily prep. Convenience without compromise is becoming a national default.

In the Philippines, canned sardines serve as both sustenance and security. With inflation averaging 6.1% in 2023 and over 20 tropical storms a year, demand for shelf-stable protein spikes in response to economic and environmental stress. Mega Global, which holds a 30% market share, invested over USD 1.7 million to expand capacity by 20%, betting on continued category growth. The company’s investment in expanded capacity is a bet that pantry-stable proteins will remain a default safety net.

In emerging and climate-vulnerable markets, brands win by delivering reliability. Food products that address economic or environmental uncertainty earn long-term trust. Packaging, shelf stability, and affordability aren’t features. They’re foundations.

Micro-trends as macro signals

The grocery aisle is a real-time indicator of consumer mood. It reveals where people are willing to compromise and where they won’t. In every market, different staples are rising for the same underlying reasons: they feel safe, smart, and familiar.

Country	Food Signal	Behavior Cue
USA	Frozen Pizza	Indulgent efficiency
UK	Baked Beans, Ready Meals	Brand elasticity
Japan	Instant Noodles	Affordable premiumization
China	Frozen Dumplings	Cultural speed
India	Mixes & Snacks	Time-cost optimization
Philippines	Canned Sardines	Resilience stockpiling

That’s not just retail behaviour. It’s brand insight. When inflation hits, when trust dips, when time disappears, the categories that survive aren’t the trendiest – they’re the ones that deliver.

The lesson for brands is clear: resilience lives in the ordinary. When the economic cycle turns again, the brands that stay in the basket will stay in the conversation.

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Blueprints and performance specs no longer tell the full story. With buyers and stakeholders demanding greater transparency, industrial tech firms are under increasing pressure to disclose more than just technical capabilities.

Procurement teams across sectors are asking deeper questions – about carbon emissions, labour conditions, and lifecycle impact. European disclosure mandates and US reporting proposals are accelerating the shift. Once confined to consumer brands, transparency expectations are now reaching B2B suppliers of semiconductors, robotics, and industrial machinery.

Buyers Want More Than a Product Sheet

Technical performance remains critical, but it is no longer the only factor in industrial procurement. A 2024 study by Market Expertise found that ESG-related concerns now rank among the top ten decision drivers for global B2B buyers. This highlights a broader shift in evaluation criteria.

Suppliers are increasingly required to provide data on emissions reduction, ethical sourcing, and corporate governance. In sectors such as aerospace, mining equipment, and chemical processing, procurement teams are requesting carbon audits, labour practice disclosures, and diversity metrics alongside traditional technical specifications.

Firms that do not meet these requirements may be excluded from consideration altogether.

New Rules Are Forcing the Issue

Industrial tech firms no longer disclose sustainability data out of goodwill; they’re doing it to comply. In the US and Europe, regulators are making ESG transparency a legal requirement.

In January 2024, the European Union’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) came into effect, requiring thousands of companies – both EU-based and international firms with regional operations – to disclose detailed information on environmental impact, human rights, and governance. For the industrial tech sector, this means publishing previously considered proprietary metrics: carbon intensity, supply chain traceability, and even energy sources.

The pressure is mounting stateside as well. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is expected to finalise rules this year mandating climate-related disclosures from publicly traded companies. This includes direct and indirect emissions data, climate risk assessments, and mitigation strategies, pushing firms in manufacturing and engineering to build new reporting infrastructures almost overnight.

The result: what was once optional is quickly becoming standard. And for firms hoping to win contracts in highly regulated markets, compliance isn’t just a checkbox; it’s a competitive edge.

Industrial Giants Begin Opening the Books

Some of the world’s largest industrial tech players are beginning to respond, not just with compliance but with proactive disclosures that mirror the transparency seen in consumer sectors.

Intel’s 2023–24 Corporate Responsibility Report goes beyond carbon emissions to include water usage, chemical management, and workforce diversity – information that was once buried in internal audits. In its 2023/24 ESG report, Lenovo disclosed targets for reducing scope 1 and 2 emissions, supply chain sustainability efforts, and metrics tied to circular economy goals. The company now ranks highest in the IT industry on the Hang Seng Corporate Sustainability Index.

NVIDIA’s 2024 sustainability report outlines how its data centres are optimised for energy efficiency, with scope 3 emissions and supplier climate programs prominently featured. These aren’t one-off updates; they’re becoming annual staples, complete with third-party verification and downloadable datasets.

For an industry known for tight-lipped operations and long procurement cycles, this shift signals more than regulatory compliance. It’s a recalibration of what trust looks like in the industrial age.

Supply Chains Are No Longer Exempt

Industrial tech firms are extending ESG scrutiny beyond their own operations. Suppliers are now under pressure to meet the same standards, sometimes higher. Contracts increasingly require disclosures not just on raw materials or manufacturing timelines but also on carbon intensity, labour conditions, and waste management practices.

Microsoft has already set the tone. In 2024, the company announced it would require key suppliers to use 100% carbon-free energy by 2030. The move came as Microsoft’s emissions rose nearly 30% year-over-year, largely due to expanded AI infrastructure and Scope 3 emissions tied to its supply base. It signals to partners: clean up or lose the business.

In Australia, chemicals and explosives company Orica has installed nitrous oxide abatement technology across multiple sites, reducing emissions by an estimated 15%, roughly equal to the annual output of all other Australian chemical producers combined. This investment wasn’t just about optics; it was about securing long-term contracts with environmentally conscious buyers.

The trend is clear: if your data isn’t clean, your bid may not even make the table.

Reporting Is Messy, Expensive, and Unfinished

For all the momentum, ESG reporting remains a logistical hurdle for many industrial tech firms. Gathering emissions data across sprawling operations, inconsistent supplier systems, and decades-old infrastructure isn’t just difficult; it’s costly and time-consuming.

A major pain point is standardisation. With dozens of frameworks in play—from the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) to the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB)—companies struggle to align disclosures that simultaneously satisfy investors, regulators, and buyers. Even firms that publish detailed ESG reports often face scepticism over data quality.

Governments are taking note. In February 2025, the European Commission proposed a 25% reduction in reporting burdens as part of its “Simplification Omnibus,” a move estimated to save businesses across the bloc €40 billion annually. While it won’t eliminate the need for transparency, the shift suggests that complexity may be one of the biggest roadblocks to effective ESG strategy.

The challenge now is not whether to report, but how to report meaningfully, consistently, and at scale.

Transparency Is Becoming a Selling Point

In industrial tech, where margins are tight and products are often commoditised, ESG transparency is emerging as a powerful differentiator. Firms that can clearly communicate their sustainability practices are gaining ground, not just with regulators but also with clients who now see environmental and social metrics as a measure of long-term value.

According to research, B2B buyers are more likely to renew contracts and pay premium prices to suppliers who can prove sustainable practices. This shift is being felt across sectors – from advanced manufacturing to semiconductors – as procurement teams weigh emissions data and ethics policies alongside delivery timelines and service-level agreements.

To meet demand, companies are investing in ESG-focused digital tools, embedding reporting capabilities into enterprise systems, and training frontline teams to speak the language of sustainability. The goal isn’t just compliance; it’s credibility.

For industrial tech firms, the message is clear: transparency isn’t a liability. It’s leverage.

What Was Optional Is Now Expected

The industrial tech sector is no longer immune to the scrutiny once reserved for high-profile consumer brands. Whether building chips, circuit boards, or heavy equipment, companies are being judged not just on what they make, but on how they make it, what they emit, and who they employ.

Procurement has become a proving ground. ESG credentials are now as critical as certifications and specs. The risk isn’t reputational for firms unprepared to meet these expectations – it’s commercial. Buyers are choosing partners who reflect their values, and those values are becoming quantifiable.

As regulatory timelines shorten and client expectations rise, the question isn’t whether to disclose but whether you’re disclosing enough, soon enough.

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Luxury retail is hitting a generational speed bump. Once buoyed by the spending power of older millennials and Gen X, high-end fashion and beauty brands are now facing a slowdown, with Gen Z opting out of traditional luxury splurges.

Most recently, global markets from Paris to Shanghai have reported sluggish sales, prompting concerns across the industry. At the same time, the secondhand apparel market is booming. Thredup’s 2024 Resale Report projects it will reach $350 billion by 2028, growing three times faster than the overall global apparel market. The rise of resale isn’t just a trend; it’s a signal that younger consumers are actively reshaping what luxury means.

According to recent research, Millennials and Gen Z are projected to account for three-fourths of global luxury spending by the end of 2025 – a figure that makes this pivot in taste and behaviour impossible for brands to ignore. Conspicuous consumption is losing appeal for a generation raised amid climate crises, economic instability, and digital transparency.

The Rise of Secondhand and Sustainable Shopping

For a generation raised on side hustles and climate consciousness, the resale rack holds more appeal than the luxury boutique. Platforms like Depop, Vestiaire Collective, and The RealReal have become go-to destinations for Gen Z shoppers, trading upcycled finds and limited-run vintage pieces with the same enthusiasm that previous generations reserved for fresh-off-the-runway collections.

Sustainability is part of the draw, but so is value – why spend $2,000 on a new designer bag when you can score a rare archival piece for half the price?

Luxury brands are paying attention. Some, like Gucci and Balenciaga, have partnered with resale platforms or launched in-house re-commerce programs to capture a slice of the growing circular economy. But for Gen Z, these moves only matter if they appear real, not reactionary.

Designer Status Loses Its Shine

Flashy logos are no longer the badge of status they once were. For Gen Z, luxury is shifting away from overt branding and toward values like individuality, sustainability, and authenticity. Rather than chasing the latest drop from heritage houses, young shoppers lean into personal style, often expressed through vintage, upcycled, or indie-label finds.

Many industry reports show how Gen Z consumers consider sustainability a primary factor in their clothing choices, outranking brand prestige. This is reflected in their growing reliance on secondhand platforms and their preference for products that align with their ethics and identity.

A carefully curated thrift-store find or a niche designer piece carries more cultural capital than a mass-produced luxury item. For legacy brands, the challenge is clear: status isn’t just about labels anymore; it’s about meaning.

Economic Pressures Meet Conscious Consumption

Inflation, student debt, and rising housing costs are prompting Gen Z to reassess their spending habits. While their overall spending power is rising, many are adopting frugal lifestyles, not just out of necessity but as a reflection of their values. Movements like “no-buy” and “low-buy” challenges have gained traction on platforms like TikTok, encouraging participants to limit their purchases to essentials. Financial pressures and a growing awareness of environmental and mental health concerns influence this shift.

Discretionary spending in the US is slowing, with luxury fashion down 12% in 2023 and another 9% in 2024, according to the Bank of America Institute. The drop signals a shift toward more intentional, value-driven consumption.

Environmental concerns also play a significant role. Deloitte’s 2024 Gen Z and Millennial Survey ranks climate change as one of the top concerns for younger consumers, influencing their preference for sustainable and ethically produced goods.

This financial restraint isn’t just shrinking purchases; it’s redirecting loyalty toward brands that reflect cultural roots and values.

Local Labels and Cultural Loyalty

Global luxury brands are facing increasing competition from a surge of homegrown talent. Gen Z consumers gravitate toward local designers who blend traditional craftsmanship with modern aesthetics and sustainable practices in markets like Indonesia and Japan.

In Japan, brands like Kapital and Visvim have garnered attention for their artisanal approach and deep cultural roots. Kapital, founded in Kojima, Okayama, is celebrated for its unique designs that draw inspiration from vintage Americana and Japanese heritage. Visvim, established in 2001, is known for its meticulous craftsmanship and commitment to quality, attracting a loyal global following.

In Indonesia, labels such as Sejauh Mata Memandang lead with textile collections grounded in local heritage and environmental consciousness. The brand applies slow fashion principles, utilising sustainable materials and traditional techniques to create pieces that resonate with environmentally conscious consumers.

These local labels often operate on smaller scales and with slower production cycles – an intentional contrast to the fast-paced churn of global fashion. For Gen Z, the appeal lies in purchasing pieces that feel personal and principled, rooted in their cultural identity and values.

A Digital Pivot to Stay Relevant

As Gen Z’s digital engagement deepens, luxury brands increasingly explore virtual platforms to connect with this tech-savvy demographic.

Gucci launched the “Gucci Garden” experience on Roblox in 2021, offering an interactive virtual exhibition celebrating the brand’s creative vision. Players could explore themed rooms inspired by Gucci’s campaigns, with their avatars absorbing elements of the exhibition and transforming into unique digital artworks.

These initiatives reflect a broader shift in the luxury industry, where digital interactions increasingly influence consumer behaviour. According to Bain & Company, approximately 70% of luxury purchases are influenced by online engagement, even if the final sale happens in-store.

To further enhance personalisation, brands like Louis Vuitton invest in AI-driven tools to tailor marketing campaigns and product recommendations based on consumer behaviour. For Gen Z, it’s not just about the product; it’s about the experience.

Rethinking Luxury for a New Generation

Legacy brands are learning that Gen Z wants more than a product – they want a point of view. In response, some of fashion’s biggest names are beginning to reframe luxury not as excess but as intention.

Burberry and Stella McCartney have rolled out repair and resale services, tapping into the circular economy. In 2023, LVMH announced plans to expand its environmental initiatives through Life 360, a roadmap focused on sustainable design, regenerative agriculture, and product longevity. Smaller labels are going even further, with capsule collections made entirely from deadstock fabrics or upcycled materials.

But authenticity remains the dealbreaker. Gen Z is adept at detecting greenwashing and is quick to call it out. A flashy sustainability pledge means little without visible follow-through, and younger consumers are doing their homework.

The path forward for luxury brands will likely require more than a seasonal campaign. It will take real investment in ethical production, meaningful storytelling, and experiences that resonate across digital and physical worlds. For a generation redefining value on its own terms, prestige alone no longer sells.

The Bottom Line

Luxury’s future won’t be built on legacy alone. With Gen Z rewriting the rules of status, style, and spending, brands that once thrived on exclusivity now face a different challenge: staying relevant in a world where authenticity, transparency, and values matter just as much as design.

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AI is transforming market research at breakneck speed. It can analyse vast datasets in seconds, extract sentiment from global conversations, and generate predictive insights that shape business decisions. The efficiency is undeniable. But AI alone is not enough.

Despite its advancements, AI will not replace human researchers. It operates within the confines of its training data, lacks contextual awareness, and cannot anticipate shifts before they emerge. AI is powerful, but it is not infallible. A misinterpreted trend or misleading prediction can lead to costly mistakes in consumer insights.

AI’s capabilities should not be mistaken for true intelligence or strategic thinking. It recognises patterns in historical data but lacks industry expertise and the ability to ask the right questions in the first place.

Brands that rely solely on AI-driven research risk making flawed decisions based on incomplete, biased, or outdated data. AI will continue to reshape market research, but human expertise remains indispensable for interpreting insights, challenging assumptions, and providing strategic foresight.

AI Lacks Context – And That’s a Problem for Market Research

AI predicts patterns; it does not comprehend meaning. It processes language based on past data, but it cannot truly understand context the way humans do. This limitation becomes clear in market research, where cultural nuance, sentiment, and local market dynamics are critical in shaping consumer behaviour.

Consider consumer sentiment analysis. A phrase like “That’s sick” can signal enthusiasm in one demographic but disapproval in another. In Japan, where indirect communication is common, consumers often soften negative feedback with neutral or ambiguous phrasing. AI models trained primarily on Western datasets may misinterpret this restraint as positive sentiment, leading to flawed insights.

AI’s failure to grasp more profound cultural shifts can also distort market trends. For example, an AI model analysing China’s luxury market might highlight rising spending on high-end brands without recognising the underlying sociopolitical drivers, such as government regulations on conspicuous wealth or the rising preference for quiet luxury among younger consumers.

Without human oversight, AI-driven research risks flattening cultural differences into misleading generalisations. An AI-optimised campaign, for instance, might target Gen Z in the U.S. and Southeast Asia with identical messaging, overlooking the vastly different values that shape purchasing decisions in each region.

AI processes data, but market research depends on understanding. Without human intelligence, context is lost.

Bias in AI Training Data

AI learns from data – flawed data leads to flawed insights. Bias in AI is not just a technical issue; it is a systemic challenge with real-world consequences for brands.

A Virginia Tech study of 555 AI models found bias in 83%. These biases stem from historical data imbalances, overrepresenting specific demographics, and cultural blind spots embedded in training datasets. In market research, this can distort consumer insights, favouring dominant markets while sidelining diverse global perspectives.

Western consumer behaviour, for example, dominates many AI training datasets. A fashion brand using AI to forecast global trends may receive insights heavily weighted toward European and North American aesthetics, overlooking emerging influences from Southeast Asia, Africa, or Latin America. AI may predict minimalist designs as a universal trend, while in reality, bold prints and intricate craftsmanship remain strong drivers of demand in emerging markets.

Bias extends beyond market trends to language models. Sentiment analysis tools trained predominantly in English struggle to detect tone, humour, and idiomatic expressions in other languages. AI interpreting social media conversations in India may fail to recognise how Hinglish (a blend of Hindi and English) influences consumer sentiment, leading to misclassifications.

These biases have real economic implications. A global brand launching an AI-driven campaign based on incomplete or skewed insights risks alienating key audiences, misallocating marketing spend, or missing untapped opportunities.

AI is a tool, not a substitute for human judgment. Researchers are essential for auditing AI insights, diversifying training data, and ensuring context before brands act.

AI Can’t Think – Flawed Prompts Lead to Flawed Insights

AI is only as accurate as the prompts it receives. Unlike human researchers, AI does not refine its inquiries. It passively generates responses based on query structure – even if the prompt is flawed, vague, or misleading.

Even skilled, prompt engineers face limitations. A poorly phrased prompt can generate oversimplified, generic, or incorrect conclusions. AI does not ask clarifying questions; it provides an answer, regardless of accuracy.

Take a simple query: “What are the key market trends in China’s e-commerce sector?” AI will likely generate an answer from public sources, summarising data that may be outdated, incomplete, or biased toward certain industries. But AI cannot:

Verify insights against proprietary industry reports
Assess real-time regulatory changes
Distinguish between consumer behaviour and aspirational trends

A human researcher, in contrast, would challenge surface-level answers, refine the inquiry, and verify data sources before drawing conclusions. They would incorporate firsthand industry reports, recent policy shifts, and expert interviews – elements AI alone cannot access.

This limitation is particularly risky when business leaders take AI-generated insights at face value. The consequences could be costly if a company bases expansion decisions on generic AI-driven market reports without considering local economic shifts or competitive dynamics.

Market research isn’t just about answers – it’s about asking the right questions. Until AI can think critically, human researchers remain essential for producing insights that are not just fast but accurate, relevant, and actionable.

AI and Data Privacy – The Hidden Risk for Market Research

Market research relies on proprietary data – confidential insights, sales figures, and competitive intelligence. However, AI models like ChatGPT cannot analyze private datasets unless directly integrated with a company’s internal systems. Even then, concerns over security, compliance, and intellectual property create significant barriers to full AI adoption in research.

Brands should be cautious about exposing sensitive business data to AI platforms. Customer transactions, internal strategy documents, and consumer feedback databases contain valuable insights that cannot be legally or ethically uploaded to public AI tools without strict safeguards.

Beyond security risks, data governance laws like GDPR (Europe) and CPRA (California) impose strict regulations on how consumer information is processed and stored. For example, an AI model generating insights from consumer purchasing data in the EU may inadvertently violate compliance rules if proper consent mechanisms are not in place.

Consider a global retailer analysing sales trends. If it relies on AI without integrating its proprietary transaction data, the model defaults to public consumer trends, often failing to reflect internal sales dynamics. The result? A misleading picture of market performance.

Privacy concerns also extend to consumer sentiment analysis. AI scrapes insights from social media, forums, and online reviews, but consumers do not always consent to their data being used for machine learning. Without clear ethical guidelines, brands risk violating consumer trust – or even regulatory standards – by unknowingly using AI-driven research based on unauthorised data extraction.

For AI to be a viable research tool, brands must build secure, proprietary models that ensure privacy compliance without compromising analytical potential. Until then, human researchers remain essential in handling market data ethically and strategically.

AI Relies on the Past – And That’s a Problem for Forecasting

AI is built on history. Every insight, prediction, and analysis it generates comes from past data. AI excels at pattern recognition but struggles with the unexpected.

Generative AI cannot foresee market disruptions, cultural shifts, or industry-defining moments that lack historical precedent. It operates within the boundaries of its training data, making it reactive rather than truly predictive.

Had AI forecasted the future of digital advertising in 2018, it would have prioritised Facebook and Instagram, entirely missing TikTok’s meteoric rise. AI lacks real-world intuition, qualitative industry insights, and cultural foresight – critical skills that human researchers possess.

AI also fails to anticipate black swan events – unforeseen disruptions that reshape industries overnight. The COVID-19 pandemic, financial collapses, and geopolitical crises that trigger supply chain shifts are beyond AI’s predictive capabilities.

AI’s reliance on past data also reinforces outdated assumptions. A model trained on consumer trends from five years ago may still prioritise pre-pandemic spending behaviours, outdated media consumption habits, or product preferences that no longer align with reality.

Human researchers, by contrast, don’t just analyse the past – they interpret weak signals, identify emerging behaviours, and anticipate shifts before they become trends. They engage in social listening, expert interviews, and in-field observations, capturing the intangibles that AI misses.

Brands that rely too heavily on AI risk making decisions for a world that no longer exists. The real advantage lies in blending AI’s efficiency with human foresight.

AI’s Misinformation Problem – And Its Consequences for Market Research

AI doesn’t just analyse data; it generates it. And that creates a serious challenge for market research: misinformation.

AI models do not verify sources, cross-check facts, or assess credibility. They generate responses based on statistical probability, not journalistic rigour or industry expertise. As a result, AI can hallucinate, fabricate, or reinforce false narratives if the underlying data is flawed.

This can result in flawed, high-stakes decisions in market research. A global brand basing a product launch on AI-generated insights risks misallocating millions if the model’s training data is flawed, biased, or outdated.

Misinformation compounds over time. When biased assumptions are repeatedly fed into AI systems, errors are reinforced, creating a cycle of false insights. This is particularly dangerous in industries where consumer preferences shift rapidly and misinformation spreads easily, such as beauty, health, finance, and sustainability. If an AI model trained on outdated reports falsely claims Gen Z is abandoning luxury goods or that plant-based diets are declining, brands that act on these insights risk missing real opportunities.

Misinformation isn’t always deliberate – sometimes, it stems from incomplete or outdated datasets. However, in market research, the cost of acting on false data remains the same, regardless of intent.

Human oversight is essential. AI can accelerate research, but only human expertise ensures insights are accurate, credible, and free from misinformation.

AI Lacks Brand Intelligence

AI can process vast amounts of data, but it lacks brand-specific knowledge. Unless explicitly trained, it cannot access proprietary company reports, internal sales data, or confidential market intelligence. AI insights remain broad, generic, and detached from a brand’s unique positioning without direct integration.

In highly competitive industries, this limitation is costly. Consider a global CPG company researching snack preferences across different markets. AI can summarise consumer sentiment from public data, but cannot:

Analyse internal sales across product categories
Evaluate past marketing campaigns’ impact on brand perception
Incorporate real-time data from loyalty programs or first-party surveys

Without these layers of proprietary insight, AI’s recommendations remain surface-level. They may identify macro trends but cannot drive brand-specific decision-making.

AI also falls short in competitive analysis. It can compare publicly available brand narratives, pricing, and digital marketing strategies, but it cannot assess a competitor’s internal strategy. A luxury fashion brand entering India needs more than AI’s broad take on “Indian consumer behaviour.” It requires firsthand research, competitor benchmarking, and localised insights – elements AI cannot generate independently.

Ultimately, market research is not just about understanding consumers – it’s about understanding them in the context of a brand’s goals, positioning, and competition. AI can identify trends, but only human researchers can align insights with business strategy, competition, and brand equity.

AI is a Tool – Human Expertise is the Advantage

AI is revolutionising market research, accelerating data analysis and expanding access to insights. But it remains just that – a tool, not a replacement for human expertise. AI can summarise data, detect patterns, and automate tasks, but it cannot think critically, challenge assumptions, or grasp the deeper context behind consumer behaviour.

Brands that rely solely on AI risk decisions based on incomplete, biased, or outdated insights – errors that can cost millions. Those who combine AI-driven efficiency with human judgment, strategic reasoning, and cultural expertise will gain a decisive competitive edge. The future of market research isn’t AI vs. humans – it’s AI with humans. The brands that master this balance won’t just adapt; they will lead.

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Once dismissed as retail relics, physical storefronts are making a surprising comeback – this time, powered by digital-first brands. From pop-ups to permanent flagships, online-native companies are opening brick-and-mortar locations not out of necessity but by design.

Amazon Style offers shoppers curated fashion based on browsing history. Warby Parker’s clean, minimalist stores blend seamlessly into upscale neighbourhoods, offering eye exams alongside Instagrammable interiors. In Bangkok, Pomelo Fashion invites customers to try on app-selected items in sleek fitting rooms before completing purchases from their phones.

It’s a reversal that reflects more than a retail pivot. While digital advertising remains cheaper in terms of pure reach, online CPMs average between $3 and $10, compared to $22 or more for traditional media, customer acquisition online is becoming less efficient. As competition intensifies and privacy changes limit ad targeting, many direct-to-consumer brands see digital acquisition costs climb, sometimes exceeding average order values. In this landscape, storefronts are emerging as strategic complements: part showroom, part service centre, part brand theatre. For these brands, it’s not just about footfall. It’s about reducing digital dependency and building loyalty through real-world engagement.

Why Physical Retail Now

For years, e-commerce promised a frictionless future – one-click checkouts, fast shipping, and endless inventory. But as digital storefronts multiplied, so did the challenges: skyrocketing customer acquisition costs, rising return rates, and a sea of sameness. Today, even the most digitally fluent brands are discovering that a website alone can’t deliver emotional connection or tactile trust.

Physical stores are filling the gap. A well‑designed storefront gives customers something the digital shelf can’t: the ability to touch, try, and experience. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, e‑commerce accounted for 15.3 % of total U.S. retail sales in 2023—a share that continues to rise quarter by quarter. While physical stores still drive the bulk of retail activity, the steady growth of online shopping, especially during major events like Black Friday, signals a lasting shift in consumer behaviour.

Still, not all categories follow the same trajectory. Furniture and home‑furnishing purchases increasingly migrate online; nearly 31 % of home furnishing sales occurred digitally in 2023. Consumer electronics remains split, with value and convenience driving online growth, but big‑ticket purchases often favour in‑store confidence. And goods like plants, outdoor supplies, garden products, and decorative home items, where touch, size, and immediacy matter, have stubbornly resisted complete digital takeover. Big‑box outlets continue to dominate these segments, with traditional furniture and outdoor‑living stores capturing the lion’s share of consumer spending.

In other words, the price tag and physicality of the item strongly influence where consumers choose to shop. You can order a lamp or phone online, but the comfort of a store still wins when it comes to the feel of a sofa, the freshness of a plant, or the scale of a patio set.

But these new retail spaces aren’t built for volume. They’re designed for impact. Brands are leaning into high-touch service, curated displays, and neighbourhood-specific assortments. Instead of acting as isolated outposts, these stores function as real-world extensions of the brand, driving online traffic, deepening engagement, and turning one-time buyers into repeat customers.

The playbook is shifting: Stores aren’t just about sales – they’re about staying top of mind in a distracted, digital-first world.

Pomelo Fashion’s Omnichannel Evolution

Founded in 2013 by David Jou and Casey Liang, Pomelo Fashion has emerged as a leading omnichannel fashion brand in Southeast Asia. Initially operating solely online, the company has expanded its presence with physical stores in Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

Central to Pomelo’s strategy is its “Tap.Try.Buy” service, which allows customers to order items online, try them on at a designated store, and pay only for what they choose to keep. This approach enhances the shopping experience by integrating the convenience of online browsing with the assurance of in-store fitting.

In May 2025, LeadIQ reported that Pomelo Fashion achieved $750 million in annual revenue, marking a substantial leap from the $38 million recorded in 2022

Pomelo’s expansion efforts have included entering new markets, such as Cambodia, where it partnered with Zando Group to establish a retail presence. Additionally, the company has focused on enhancing supply chain efficiency by implementing unified inventory systems and streamlining return processes.

By seamlessly blending online and offline experiences, Pomelo Fashion continues to adapt to the evolving retail landscape, aiming to meet the diverse preferences of its customer base.

Why online brands are opening stores

For digital-first companies, opening a physical store isn’t about replicating traditional retail – it’s about amplifying what already works. With online customer acquisition costs climbing and attention spans shrinking, many brands view stores as a channel for deeper engagement rather than just sales.

Stores offer what websites can’t: human connection, hands-on product trials, and immediate service. They create environments where discovery feels organic and tactile, and shoppers can linger, ask questions, and build trust. That trust often carries over into digital behaviour. According to Warby Parker’s most recent earnings report, customers who engage with online and retail touchpoints tend to have higher lifetime value.

For brands like Pomelo, stores also provide critical feedback loops. Each in-person interaction offers insights into fit, preferences, and regional trends – data that helps refine everything from product design to inventory allocation. Physical locations are no longer separate from e-commerce platforms – they’re extensions of them, working in sync to personalise the experience and drive loyalty.

The result is a more resilient retail model, one that spans screens and sidewalks.

The evolving role of the website

While physical spaces gain momentum, the brand website remains the nerve centre of the modern retail ecosystem. But its role is shifting – from being the sole point of sale to becoming a connective platform that bridges discovery, transaction, and service.

Today’s websites aren’t just digital catalogues. They power appointments for in-store try-ons, host loyalty programs, manage returns, and sync with physical inventory in real-time. At Pomelo, the app and website are critical to the “Tap.Try.Buy” model, allowing customers to browse, reserve, and purchase without friction. Warby Parker’s platform does the same, letting users schedule eye exams, browse local store stock, or complete an in-store purchase online.

For brands blending offline and online, the website is no longer the endpoint – it’s the interface. It carries the brand’s identity, handles the logistics, and learns from each customer interaction. As stores become more experiential, the website does the heavy lifting behind the scenes, ensuring a seamless handoff between channels.

The digital shelf might not be enough on its own anymore, but it’s more important than ever in making the entire system work.

What shopping will look like in 2050

If you walk into a store in 2050, you might not walk out with a bag. Instead, your personalised selections – curated by AI, informed by biometric data, and filtered through your sustainability preferences – could arrive at your door within hours, if not minutes.

Retail futurists envision spaces that act less like inventory warehouses and more like interactive brand labs. Physical stores may shrink in size but grow in sophistication, equipped with augmented reality mirrors, smart shelves, and real-time language translation for global shoppers. Facial recognition could trigger dynamic pricing based on loyalty status or previous purchases if consumers opt in.

Sustainability will likely shape store formats, too. Modular, low-waste layouts, carbon-neutral delivery options, and locally sourced assortments could become table stakes. Data from online and in-store behaviour will sync seamlessly, creating a “phygital” loop where discovery, trial, and purchase span both worlds.

But some things won’t change. Shoppers will still crave connection, story, and the confidence that comes from seeing and touching a product before committing. The brands that win in 2050 may look futuristic – but at their core, they’ll understand something timeless: trust is built person-to-person, even when powered by pixels.

Retail’s Quiet Reinvention

What began as a tactical move to lower return rates or offer fitting rooms has turned into something more fundamental: a rethinking of what retail means. Digital-first brands aren’t just entering physical spaces; they’re redesigning them on their terms.

These aren’t legacy department stores or big-box chains. They’re focused, frictionless, and hyper-intentional. Every square foot has a purpose, whether to host an eye exam, facilitate same-day pickup, or serve as a live feedback loop for product development.

The quiet reinvention underway isn’t about going back – it’s about moving forward with the tools, data, and expectations of a new era. The lines between online and offline are no longer blurred. They’re gone entirely.

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The consumer journey used to begin with intent. A need arose, a search began, and brands vied for attention on the results page. That digital arena, structured around keywords, ads, and SEO, rewarded whoever best spoke the search engine’s language. That model is losing ground.

AI is altering not only what consumers see but also how they seek. Search is giving way to suggestion. Generative AI tools such as ChatGPT, Google’s SGE, and TikTok’s algorithmic feed replace active intent with passive input. Type less. Scroll more. The funnel is fading.

In this new model, over half of consumers prefer product suggestions from generative AI rather than search engines. Nearly seven in ten say they’re ready to act on them. What once required comparison and evaluation is increasingly instant and unexamined.

The implications for brands are structural. Visibility is no longer won on a search results page. The new battleground lies inside opaque recommendation systems, where influence depends on what the algorithm surfaces, not what the consumer seeks.

When Search Becomes Suggestion

Once, the journey began at the search bar. Now, it starts within the logic of a machine. More and more choices—from headphones to holidays—emerge not from exploration but from a feed or prompt. Curated results appear from systems trained on data the consumer never sees.

This isn’t hypothetical. In the past year, 58 percent of global consumers have begun using generative AI for product recommendations, according to Capgemini. In the UK, 37 percent of under-40s now use AI for more than half of their searches. In the US, it’s 32 percent. The expectation isn’t to browse. It’s to receive, instantly and with zero friction.

Even when consumers still use search engines, their behaviour has shifted. Google’s Search Generative Experience now places AI-generated summaries above all other results.

According to Adobe, in 75 percent of cases, these overviews end the search then and there. Users find what they need without ever visiting a brand’s site. Visibility, once a matter of rankings and backlinks, is now defined by what the machine considers relevant.

For brands, this changes the calculus. Winning a keyword no longer guarantees visibility. If your product is not named in the AI’s shortlist, you do not exist. Recipe platforms have already felt the impact. In late 2024, traffic fell sharply as AI began answering holiday cooking questions outright. Only brands that were directly cited, such as Allrecipes, maintained strong engagement.

The Vanishing Middle

The old journey had a rhythm. Awareness led to research, research to comparison, and comparison to choice. Each step allowed brands to step in, whether through ads, testimonials, or product pages. That middle ground is disappearing.

Instead of reading dozens of reviews, consumers now ask AI assistants which model to buy. They trust the tools to compare specs and recommend what fits. A global survey from Attest in early 2025 found that 47 percent of consumers use generative AI tools such as ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, or Claude to research products before purchasing. In Canada and the UK, the number rises to over half. These are no longer fringe behaviours. They are becoming the norm.

The reason is simple. AI makes the process feel efficient. It can process reviews in seconds, highlight differences, and suggest what someone like you might want. Research by Bain & Company shows that in China, where e-commerce evolves rapidly, 58 percent of consumers already trust AI product recommendations, and 65 percent are comfortable using it to make decisions. On platforms like Taobao, users can now ask what’s trending, what fits their style, or what is on sale, all through generative AI chat.

Consumers are not just skipping steps. They are outsourcing them. And many prefer it. Capgemini reports that 68 percent of global consumers are now willing to act on AI-generated product recommendations. This includes both first-time purchases and routine replacements. What was once a journey is now a prompt.

For brands, this compression brings a new kind of challenge. The window to influence is smaller. If AI chooses the shortlist, brands must win earlier. At the same time, the impact of inclusion is greater. Being one of three suggestions matters more than ranking seventeenth on a search page. Presence in the recommendation layer is now critical.

How Trust in AI Splits Across Borders

While AI is changing how people shop worldwide, not everyone is moving at the same speed or with the same trust. The gaps span age, location, and gender, showing where AI influence is strongest and where hesitation remains.

In Southeast Asia, adoption is surging. A regional study by SleekFlow found that 88 percent of shoppers across Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore rely on AI recommendations to guide purchases. Ninety-two percent use AI-powered platforms for personalised suggestions. These markets are mobile-first and integrated across platforms, making them more receptive to automation that simplifies shopping.

By contrast, consumer sentiment in the US remains cautious. According to the Retail Media Breakfast Club, 55 percent of American shoppers do not trust AI shopping chatbots or automated product suggestions. Among those who encounter these tools, fewer than half choose to engage. The scepticism often stems from perceived bias, previous poor experiences, and a preference for human reassurance in more complex decisions.

Age plays a defining role. Research from Attest shows that 60 percent of shoppers under 50 are willing to use AI assistants or chatbots on brand websites, compared to only 43 percent of those aged 50 and older. Younger consumers tend to see AI as infrastructure—a tool rather than a threat. They also expect higher levels of personalisation. Capgemini reports that two-thirds of Gen Z and millennials want AI-powered product suggestions tailored to their behaviour and preferences.

A measurable gender divide has also emerged. A recent multi-country survey by Attest found that 52 percent of men are comfortable with AI-generated product recommendations, compared to just 43 percent of women. The reasons vary, but often include differences in trust toward technology and the desire to retain control over purchasing decisions.

As more of the consumer journey is shaped by algorithms, these differences become more significant. Brands using AI in customer-facing roles, such as chatbots, smart recommendations, or predictive tools, must calibrate the experience. This may involve offering human support options, explaining how suggestions are generated, or allowing customers to set their own preferences.

AI may be guiding the journey, but consumers still decide whether to follow it.

Rethinking Visibility

The scramble to adapt is well underway. As the consumer journey shifts from search to suggestion, brands are confronting a simple truth: if they are not recommended, they are not seen.

This shift has prompted a quiet pivot. Marketing teams that once focused on SEO and paid search are now trying to understand the internal logic of generative AI. A new term is gaining traction: AI Optimisation, or AIO. It refers to becoming discoverable not through indexed pages, but through the language models that shape how consumers discover information.

The mechanics of AI optimisation are still evolving. Unlike search engines, generative tools do not explain how they rank or retrieve results. But early patterns are emerging. Content written by brands often performs better than affiliate-style reviews. Clear metadata and direct answers increase the chances of being cited. Brands that lead in category-specific Q&A content are more likely to appear in AI-generated responses. The tactics resemble SEO in structure, but not in strategy.

The urgency is real. In late 2024, when generative AI summaries began appearing at the top of search results, retailers and publishers saw immediate declines in organic traffic. Recipe websites were among the first to feel the impact. Pages that once ranked highly for terms like “how long to roast a turkey” were bypassed by AI-generated summaries offering the answer directly. According to Retail TouchPoints, only sites cited within the summaries retained or gained traffic during the holiday surge.

This marks a shift in where and how attention is directed. Investment is following the trend. Capgemini’s latest consumer trends report shows that seven in ten consumer product and retail brands now see generative AI as transformative. The shift extends beyond content and search, reaching across ecommerce, brand-owned channels, and customer service platforms. Rather than simply attracting clicks through advertising, these brands are now focused on teaching algorithms to recommend them first.

This new strategy begins upstream. Influence must be established before the consumer even knows what to search for.

When Precision Becomes Overreach

Personalisation has always been the promise. AI made it scalable. Yet as recommendations become more precise, the line between relevance and intrusion starts to blur.

Retailers are already tailoring storefronts, emails, and product bundles in real time using algorithms that learn from shopper behaviour. According to SleekFlow, 86 percent of Indonesian shoppers and 80 percent of Malaysians are more likely to buy when recommendations feel personalised. These are not marginal lifts. For many brands, it can be the difference between cart abandonment and conversion.

Yet enthusiasm has limits. In the US and Europe, many consumers remain uneasy about how much insight AI systems have into their preferences. The same personalisation that increases engagement can raise concern when it feels overly intrusive. An ad that references recent browsing may feel helpful. One that appears to tap into emotional insecurities can feel invasive. This is especially true in sensitive categories such as health, beauty, and finance.

The challenge for brands is not just technical but perceptual. When consumers do not understand why a suggestion appears, trust begins to erode. Some companies are responding by rethinking opaque recommendation systems. Others are adding cues such as “Because you bought X” or “Similar customers preferred” to explain suggestions without revealing the full algorithm.

At its best, personalisation mimics human intuition. But when it becomes too precise, it reminds people they are being watched. The opportunity lies in keeping suggestions helpful without making them feel inevitable. Brands that succeed may not be the ones with the most data, but those with the most restraint.

Why-millennials-demand-work-life-balance

Where Did All the Traffic Come From?

The numbers still arrive in dashboards: sessions, bounce rates, time on page. But what drives them is shifting. AI-generated traffic behaves differently. It is erratic, difficult to attribute, and increasingly where the momentum is.

During the 2024 holiday season, US retailers reported a sharp surge in visits originating from generative AI tools. Adobe Analytics reported that traffic from AI assistants to retail sites rose more than 1,300 percent year over year, with Cyber Monday alone spiking nearly 1,950 percent. By early 2025, volumes had normalised but remained 1,200 percent higher than six months prior. These were not background processes. They were real consumers arriving through prompts, voice queries, and curated answer boxes.

Most arrived without a breadcrumb trail. They skipped homepages, ignored menu structures, and bypassed campaign entry points. Often, the AI had already filtered their options. The user clicked through with purpose, but no context. They had been handed a short list and were already deep into decision mode.

The design assumptions behind most ecommerce sites are ill-suited to this pattern. Recommendation engines still default to broad segmentation. Onsite personalisation depends heavily on past behaviour. But AI-driven visits come from somewhere else entirely. The visitor may never have seen an ad. They may not have been retargeted. They are acting on a suggestion from a model trained on billions of pages, but not necessarily one the brand paid to influence.

When the Shelf Is Chosen for You

Consumers have always edited the market down to a handful of options. AI just gets there first. Instead of reviewing dozens of choices, people are increasingly presented with three or four. In many cases, that shortlist is generated automatically. The product that appears first is not always the best or cheapest. It is the one the model selects, based on inputs the consumer never sees.

This has created a new visibility economy. Brands are no longer just competing for attention. They are competing for inclusion. One generative AI platform recommends a particular vacuum cleaner because its specs were easier to parse. Another suggests a niche beauty brand because it had more verified customer reviews. These are not paid placements. They are algorithmic guesses at relevance, made instantly and often without explanation.

The result is a narrowing of the funnel before the consumer ever enters it. In B2B markets, this is already measurable. A 2025 G2 report found that nearly one in ten business buyers now skip the traditional shortlist process entirely, moving forward with a single vendor surfaced by AI. In these cases, the machine performs triage on behalf of the buyer. The rest of the market never gets a look.

The implications are not subtle. Being second no longer means being part of the decision. It means being invisible.

From Funnel to Feedback Loop

The consumer journey is no longer a funnel. It is a feedback loop, shaped less by desire than by data. When AI becomes the first point of contact and the final nudge to purchase, brands lose the space in between. They no longer guide decisions. They wait to be selected.

This is not just a change in channels. It is a change in power. Brands built their digital strategies around discoverability, assuming the consumer would come looking. That assumption is obsolete. AI is now the gatekeeper, the recommender, the editor of choices. And unlike search engines, it does not reward effort. It rewards fit.

The question is not how to rank. It is how to be picked. That means understanding how generative systems evaluate relevance, context, and authority. It means building content for a model, not a human. It means accepting that visibility is no longer earned through awareness but conferred through inclusion.

Most brands are still trying to optimise the journey. The smartest ones are rebuilding for a world where the journey is optimised by someone else.

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Protein has slipped out of the gym and into everyday life. It’s no longer the domain of weightlifters or meal-prep obsessives, but something far more ordinary and far more widespread. In Britain, it now turns up in desk drawers, schoolbags, glove compartments, and corner shop fridges. It’s being stirred, shaken, squeezed, and snackified. And, crucially, it’s not being consumed for muscle. It’s for focus. For balance. For the small but satisfying sense of doing something right.

Sales of protein bars, powders, and drinks have climbed 24.2% in the past year, pushing the UK’s sports nutrition market to £1.1 billion. But the term “sports” is misleading. For many, protein isn’t about performance at all. It’s about practicality. Commuters pick up ready-to-drink shakes between trains. Office workers reach for a bar between Zoom calls. Parents hand protein yoghurts to teenagers because they feel vaguely healthier than crisps. Protein, today, is about keeping things ticking over.

That quiet normalisation is most obvious on the high street. Where once there was a dusty corner of the supermarket for “active lifestyles”, now there are prominent displays of high-protein snacks, cereals, bakery items, and even desserts. It’s a word that works across the nutritional spectrum, something that can sit beside indulgence as easily as it can beside restraint.

And British shoppers aren’t short on options. Shelves are filled with chocolate-coated, dairy-free, oat-based, and whey-packed bars, flavoured with everything from peanut butter to salted caramel. The variety says as much about branding as it does about diet. Protein has become shorthand for modern food values: a desire for function, as well as taste, convenience, and, increasingly, identity.

Protein is no longer just a supplement. For many, it reflects small, everyday choices that align with broader intentions—eating well, staying alert, and maintaining balance. In a culture increasingly shaped by wellbeing, high-protein foods offer a quiet reassurance that you’re doing something good for yourself.

What’s Driving the Protein Push

What’s driving protein’s rise isn’t hype, but how effortlessly it fits into everyday routines. Unlike other health trends that require restriction or reinvention, protein works quietly in the background, adding structure, energy, and reassurance. From Gen Z to pensioners, each generation is finding its own reasons to embrace it.

Millennials and Gen Z are leading the shift, but they’re not chasing muscle gains. Recent research revealed that over 60% of UK adults under 35 say they consume high-protein foods to feel energised and manage stress, rather than for fitness. On platforms like TikTok, #highproteinmealprep has surpassed 700 million views, with fridge tours and influencer routines turning protein bars and powders into everyday essentials. These are not supplements. They are lifestyle markers, shared as much for accountability as for aesthetics.

Yet the interest is not confined to the under-40s. In a recent survey, 45% of UK consumers over 55 said they were increasing protein intake to support healthy ageing. This group is not buying protein for trend’s sake, but for muscle preservation and mobility. The shift reflects a broader awareness that protein is not just for the gym. It is a foundation for long-term wellbeing.

One motivation stands out across age groups and lifestyles: functionality. Unlike diets that cut, cleanse, or punish, high-protein choices add something. They help people feel fuller, stay sharper, snack less, and simplify mealtimes. This reflects Britain’s broader wellness economy, where the emphasis is on feeling well rather than performing wellness.

This also helps explain why consumers prefer familiar formats. Bars, shakes, yoghurts, and puddings continue to dominate, not because they are new, but because they are practical. Most shoppers are not looking for lab-designed alternatives. They want recognisable foods that fit their habits and offer clear functional benefits.

The result is not a fleeting trend, but a gradual evolution in how people approach food. Protein is not a disruptor. It is an enabler. It offers small, practical wins that add up over time. In a culture where wellness is no longer niche, that promise holds lasting appeal.

The Brand Strategy Behind the Boom

As the appetite for protein grows, so too has the way it is marketed. In supermarkets and corner shops alike, protein is no longer confined to the health aisle. It appears on endcaps, in meal deals, and even in vending machines. It has been repositioned not as a supplement, but as a shortcut to modern living.

Marketing once focused on performance: leaner, stronger, faster. Now it leans toward everyday credibility. Products no longer ask consumers to train harder. They position themselves as tools to help people keep going. UFIT’s ready-to-drink shakes, for instance, are priced at £1.79 for a grab-and-go bottle, aimed at shoppers who have never set foot in a supplement store. Grenade, one of the UK’s bestselling protein bar brands, leads with indulgence rather than nutrition. Flavours like white chocolate cookie, fudge brownie, and peanut butter make the experience feel more like a treat than a transaction.

Even traditionally masculine brands like Jack Link’s have adapted. The US-born jerky maker now invests in UK campaigns across esports, festivals, and social media. This is no longer protein for the gym. It is protein for gaming, raving, and late-night snacking. The shift is strategic. In Britain, protein has become a lifestyle.

Much of this success comes down to the flexibility of the format. Bars and shakes don’t require a new habit. They fit easily into existing ones. That’s also why brands have doubled down on packaging that communicates quickly, using bold labels like “20g PROTEIN,” simplified ingredient lists, and soft colour palettes borrowed from the wellness world.

And the storytelling doesn’t stop at the shelf. Influencer partnerships, especially with micro-influencers who reflect everyday routines, have helped protein products blend seamlessly into social feeds. Not as a flex, but as a cue. In a world where the line between food and self-image continues to blur, that visibility matters.

In the UK, brands aren’t selling protein as performance. They’re selling it as permission. Permission to snack, to simplify, to opt into health without opting out of pleasure. It is this careful balance between function and familiarity that has propelled protein from niche to necessity.

Image credit: Huel

Huel’s success tells a story far bigger than meal replacement. Founded in the UK in 2015, the brand launched with a promise of nutritional completeness and convenience, offering vegan shakes and powders for those too busy to cook but unwilling to compromise on health. It quickly moved from niche to norm, propelled by savvy digital marketing and a cult-like community of professionals, students, and time-pressed urbanites.

What makes Huel notable is how it positioned protein as a practical staple instead of a specialist tool. Its expansion from online-only sales to supermarket shelves brought ready-to-drink shakes and bars into the hands of everyday shoppers. By 2024, Huel’s global footprint had reached 25,650 stores, its UK retail presence strengthened, and its annual sales hit £214 million, an increase of 16 percent year-on-year. The brand’s profitability also grew sharply, with pre-tax profit nearly tripling in the same period.

Huel hasn’t leaned on performance or indulgence. Instead, it has championed efficiency, routine, and nutritional balance, values that resonate with modern British consumers, especially millennials and Gen Z. In doing so, it helped redefine what protein means in everyday life.

How the UK Compares Globally

Britain’s protein habit may feel local, but it is playing out on a global stage. Around the world, consumers are rethinking when and why they reach for protein. Yet the UK stands apart not in volume, but in tone. While other countries frame protein around performance, Britain treats it more like a life skill. It is about balance, ease, and everyday upkeep.

In the United States, the trend has gone maximalist. Protein shows up in ice cream, pancake mix, breakfast cereal, and even candy. Proffee, a mash-up of protein and iced coffee, started as a TikTok trend and quickly moved into cafés and ready-to-drink ranges. Sixty-three percent of Americans actively look for protein in snacks. The line between indulgence and function is all but gone.

In Southeast Asia, the shift looks different. Economic growth has made animal protein more accessible, driving up demand. At the same time, younger consumers in countries like Thailand and Singapore are drawn to plant-based alternatives, which they associate with health, sustainability, and modernity. In Thailand, sixty-seven percent of consumers say they plan to reduce meat consumption. The motivation is not ethical but personal. People want to feel better and live longer.

In Japan, protein trends are shaped by age. An older population is fuelling demand for products that support strength and mobility but are easy to consume. Protein jellies, soft snacks, and drinkable supplements are now common, pitched as daily maintenance rather than athletic fuel.

China is experiencing a boom in online protein sales, up sixty-eight percent yearly in 2023. A mix of fitness aspirations and beauty messaging drives the growth. Protein powders are popular with women and have been promoted as tools for weight management and skin health. Livestream shopping and influencer campaigns sell a lifestyle as much as a product.

In India, the conversation is still emerging. A large percentage of the population remains protein deficient, but a growing middle class is engaging with protein as a marker of wellbeing. Dairy brands like Amul have launched fortified lassi and ice cream, positioning protein as both nutritious and desirable.

Across these regions, protein is rising in relevance. But few markets have made it as ordinary as the UK. Here, it is not aspirational or remedial. It is part of the meal deal, the snack shelf, and the weekday routine. It does not announce itself. It just fits.

The Rise of a Rotational Approach to Protein

Protein may be having its moment, but British shoppers are not choosing sides. The surge in high-protein eating has not sparked a divide between meat and plants. Instead, people are mixing both, often within the same day, and sometimes the same meal.

Part of the shift is pragmatic. Meat remains central to most diets, but plant-based options have gained ground as a way to lighten meals without losing satisfaction. The UK leads Europe in plant-protein innovation, accounting for roughly 18 percent of all new product launches. Supermarket shelves now carry lentil-based pasta, oat-protein shakes, vegan protein bars, and meat-free versions of familiar British dishes.

This is not happening because the nation has gone vegetarian. Most consumers still identify as omnivores or flexitarians. What has changed is the desire for variety and balance. A plant-based lunch does not preclude roast chicken at dinner. It simply reflects a flexible approach to food, guided by mood, values, or convenience.

Protein branding speaks to this shift. On one shelf, whey-based shakes and jerky target muscle and recovery. A few paces away, pea-protein bars promise calm, clarity, and clean ingredients. Both are selling, often to the same household. In The Telegraph’s round-up of the year’s best protein bars, vegan and dairy-based options sit side by side, not as rivals but as parallel answers to different needs.

Taste, convenience, and credibility matter more than protein source. Shoppers want it to work, but they also want it to feel right—nutritionally, culturally, and ethically. The success of the category depends less on what it is made from and more on how well it fits into daily life.

In Britain, this is not about replacement. It is about rotation. And that, more than anything, explains why protein has found a place across such a wide swathe of the population.

What the Protein Economy Means for the Future

Protein may be having its moment, but British shoppers are not choosing sides. The rise of high-protein eating has not triggered a divide between meat and plants. Instead, people are blending both, often within the same day, and sometimes the same meal.

Part of this shift is practical. Meat remains a staple, but plant-based options have gained ground as a way to lighten meals without sacrificing taste. The UK leads Europe in plant-protein innovation, responsible for around 18 percent of all new launches. Supermarkets now stock lentil-based pasta, oat-protein shakes, vegan protein bars from brands like Huel and Tribe, and meat-free versions of familiar dishes.

This is not happening because the country has gone vegetarian. Most consumers still identify as omnivores or flexitarians. What has changed is the desire for variety and balance. A plant-based lunch does not mean skipping chicken at dinner. It simply reflects a flexible, responsive way of eating.

Protein branding follows suit. On one aisle, whey-based shakes and jerky from brands like UFIT and Jack Link’s are positioned for strength and recovery. Nearby, pea-protein bars and oat-based products promise calm, energy, and simplicity. Both types sell, often to the same person.

Taste, convenience, and credibility matter more than the source. Consumers want protein that works, but they also want it to align with their habits, values, and sense of self. Success in this category depends not on whether the protein is animal or plant, but on how well it fits into daily life.

In the UK, this is not about replacement. It is about rotation. And that, more than anything, explains why protein has broad appeal across generations, income brackets, and lifestyles.

Looking to understand the next wave of protein consumers?
At Kadence International, we help brands uncover what drives demand, from satiety to sustainability, and how to connect with evolving needs through the right formats, flavours, and messaging. Whether you’re refining recipes, developing new product lines, or targeting new segments, our research gives you the evidence to act confidently. Get in touch to see how we can support your next move.

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Consumer sentiment in the US took a sharp downturn in the first quarter of 2025, signalling growing anxiety about the economy as inflation fears and geopolitical tensions weigh heavily on households.

The University of Michigan’s consumer-sentiment index dropped to 50.8 in April, down from 57 in March, marking the lowest since June 2022. Inflation expectations surged to a 44-year high of 6.7%, deepening concerns about a potential recession. As fears of stagnant economic growth and rising costs persist, US households are not only deferring big-ticket purchases but are also shifting their spending habits. A 2024 survey by McKinsey found that 57% of consumers plan to postpone purchases of cars, electronics, and home appliances due to economic uncertainty. This behaviour reflects a broader shift in consumer priorities, where many opt to save for security rather than indulge in discretionary purchases.

In addition, more consumers are actively reconsidering their brand choices. According to Ipsos, one in four Americans have boycotted a brand in the past year over political or ethical reasons, signalling a more value-driven approach to spending. This trend underscores a more selective approach, with households prioritising purchases that align with personal values and long-term needs.

The Shift in Spending Behaviour Globally

Globally, households are tightening their belts in response to growing financial uncertainty. Consumer confidence has dropped significantly in the US and Europe, as evidenced by rising savings rates. In the US, savings deposits increased by 5.4% in 2024, according to major US banks, while credit card usage declined. Meanwhile, Europe’s savings rate surged to 13.5% in Q4 2024, up from 10.7% in 2023, indicating that consumers are prioritising savings over spending.

Retail sectors are feeling the impact of this shift. High-ticket purchases, such as luxury goods and cars, are down across key markets as consumers focus on essentials and future security. Reports from the European Central Bank show a marked decline in discretionary spending, echoing similar trends in the US.

While this cautious approach stems from immediate financial strain and long-term economic uncertainty, the shift is expected to shape the global economy in the coming months. Companies that can adapt – offering products aligned with consumer values, health, and sustainability – will be well-positioned to thrive in this evolving market.

Case Study: Frasers Group’s Strategic Store Closures Amid Economic Uncertainty

Image credit: X

Background:
Frasers Group, a major UK retailer owning brands like Sports Direct and House of Fraser, has faced challenges due to declining consumer confidence and increased operational costs. In response, the company has closed several stores, including its flagship, House of Fraser in Bath, which had been operating for over 200 years.

Actions Taken:
Frasers Group has been consolidating its physical retail presence, focusing on high-performing locations and expanding its online offerings. The company has also been investing in its luxury segment, with CEO Michael Murray expressing confidence in a rebound in demand for premium goods.

Outcome:
While facing short-term challenges, Frasers Group aims to strengthen its market position by streamlining operations and capitalising on the anticipated recovery in luxury retail.

The Impact on Financial Institutions and Retailers

As consumer behaviour shifts toward savings and caution, financial institutions and retailers feel the effects. Banks have reported an uptick in deposits, while credit card usage has decreased, signalling a change in how consumers manage their finances in uncertain times.

In the US, savings rates have steadily increased over recent years as consumers prioritise financial security. The Federal Reserve’s 2024 Financial Stability Report shows that household savings rates have remained elevated, with a marked preference for more liquid assets. This shift in consumer behaviour is attributed to ongoing economic uncertainties and the rising cost of living. Meanwhile, credit card debt, though still growing, has been growing at a slower pace compared to the previous year, with the Federal Reserve noting in its 2024 Report on Household Debt and Credit that credit card balances increased by 6.4% in 2023, slower than previous years’ growth. This suggests consumers are becoming more cautious with discretionary spending, opting to save more and use credit less.

Retailers are adjusting to these changing dynamics. For many brands, especially those in luxury and non-essential goods markets, the slowdown in spending has forced a reevaluation of strategies. High-end brands, which have long relied on the discretionary spending of affluent consumers, are facing challenges as more shoppers scale back on big-ticket purchases.

On the other hand, retailers in the wellness, health, and essential goods sectors benefit from this shift. A January 2024 McKinsey & Company report highlights that 56% of Gen Z consumers in the US consider fitness and wellness a “very high priority,” reflecting a continued commitment to spending on health-related products and services. McKinsey estimates that the global wellness market, valued at over $1.8 trillion, continues to grow at 5-10% annually, with significant demand for wellness products in emerging markets.

For financial institutions, the challenge lies in balancing the growing demand for savings accounts and low-risk investments with the need to provide consumer credit options. As fewer people rely on credit cards, many banks are exploring alternative forms of credit, such as buy now, pay later (BNPL) services, which allow consumers to make purchases without accumulating high-interest debt. While BNPL services have gained popularity, there are concerns about their long-term sustainability and the potential for increased consumer debt.

Ultimately, the growing trend toward saving and cautious spending drives significant shifts in the financial services and retail sectors. Companies that can adapt to these changes – offering value, flexibility, and products aligned with consumers’ evolving needs – will be well-positioned to thrive in the coming months.

How Brands are Adapting Strategies in Response to Consumer Behaviour Shifts

In response to the evolving consumer market, companies are implementing various strategies to align with changing preferences and economic conditions:

Enhanced Digital Engagement: Retailers use digital platforms to offer personalised shopping experiences. This includes leveraging data analytics to understand consumer behaviour and tailoring marketing efforts accordingly.
Flexible Pricing and Promotions: Companies are introducing flexible pricing models and targeted promotions to address price sensitivity. This approach aims to maintain customer loyalty while accommodating budget-conscious consumers.
Product Innovation and Diversification: Brands diversify their offerings to meet consumers’ evolving demands. This includes introducing new product lines that align with current trends, such as wellness-focused or sustainable products.

The Road Ahead: Implications for Economic Growth

The trend toward saving and cautious spending presents a complex economic landscape. While rising savings rates provide financial security for households, the slowdown in consumer spending could stall short-term economic growth. In Q1 2024, real personal consumption expenditures (PCE) grew just 1.3%, down sharply from 3.4% in Q4 2023. This slowdown reflects persistent inflationary pressures.

As discretionary spending contracts, sectors dependent on non-essential purchases, such as luxury goods and travel, face significant challenges. Bain & Company reports that global luxury market growth slowed to 3% in 2024, a stark decline from double-digit growth in previous years.

However, wellness, health products, and essential goods continue to see strong demand, driven by consumer interest in well-being and sustainability.

As consumer caution impacts overall economic activity, particularly in markets reliant on consumption-driven growth, policymakers and brands must adapt. Encouraging spending on wellness and essential goods, while promoting savings, could help stabilise growth. Companies that strategically align with these consumer priorities—through innovation, targeted marketing, and flexible pricing – will be better positioned to thrive despite economic uncertainty.

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