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Global Consumer Trends: Convenience

Datamonitor
August 13, 2009
SKU: DFMN2421686

Abstract Table of Contents Search inside this report Related Reports

Countries covered: Global

Introduction

44% of citizens across 15 countries feel that it is difficult to manage their daily obligations and find time to relax. The attitude to time that many now adopt is one that focuses on leisure time maximization and one where solutions that facilitate additional time to do the things that are deemed most important is highly valued

Scope

Detailed trend analysis outlining what constitutes 'value' for consumers (trends are, after all, a reflection of what's important to consumers)
Global in focus, but also offers country-by-country and sector insights thereby catering to top-line or more specific information needs
Covers all major FMCG sectors, but also with applicability to wider consumer goods audiences
One of 10 dedicated mega-trend reports outlining the most important issues shaping global consumers' buying behavior both now and in the future

Highlights

Good trend-watching is about taking the bigger-picture approach. Adopting a broader global perspective to trend-tracking facilitates better decision making by overcoming 'category myopia'. Monitoring the broader FMCG environment will enable bigger picture learning that can be applied more specifically
A Datamonitor consumer survey in April/May 2009 established that less than half of consumers across 17 countries are satisfied with their work-life balance. This reflects a lifestyle imbalance that characterizes many contemporary lifestyles
Various commitments and demands from work and personal/family life have contributed to the feeling of time-deprivation. People are looking for speed and convenience and anything that allows them to feel more in control of time

Reasons to Purchase

Understand the significance of the different convenience-aligned trends across territories and FMCG sectors to help support market diversification
Save time and gain maximal insight by using this 'one-stop-shop' resource which offers a clear and up-to-date framework for understanding consumers
Access data from two waves of global primary research to increase the likelihood of being 'on-trend' with NPD and marketing activities

Overview: Catalyst; Summary; Table of Contents; Table of figures
INTRODUCTION: THE IMPORTANCE OF TREND-TRACKING: Tracking consumer mega-trends is fundamental to long-term success
THE FUTURE DECODED: DECIPHERING THE CONVENIENCE MEGA-TREND: MEGA-TREND SYNOPSIS: Consumers feel the need to manage a plethora competing demands on their time; TREND: Lifestyle Claustrophobia: time scarcity and time compression increasingly characterize consumers' lives and influence the consumption choices they make; TREND: Practical Personal and Household Aesthetics: consumers value the opportunity to adopt simplified, less time intensive personal and household care routines; TREND: Mealtime Stress and Simplification: simplifying meal preparation and consumption remains a lifestyle reality for many time-poor consumers; TREND: Mealtime Fragmentation, Informality and Expediency: consumers are adopting a more flexible and informal approach to food preparation consumption; TREND: Efficient Shopping: convenience needs impact upon store selection and in-store behaviors
APPENDIX: Definitions; Methodology; Further reading and references; Ask the analyst; Datamonitor consulting; Disclaimer
List of Figures: Figure 1: Datamonitor's mega-trends are having a long-term and substantive impact on the marketing landscape and can be grouped into two categories; Figure 2: Consumer behavior and the innovations targeting it inevitably fit into a 'trend hierarchy'; Figure 3: Datamonitor's mega-trend framework helps set the agenda for the specific topics covered in the New Consumer Insight (NCI) research stream; Figure 4: Trend tracking can be a source of (comparative) competitive analysis; Figure 5: Trend development is dictated by both 'consumer pull' and 'manufacturer push' and Datamonitor offers the intelligence tools to capitalize on this reality; Figure 6: In a consumerist global culture, the broad consumption spheres/segments transcend geographical borders which is another reason why adopting a broader approach is necessary; Figure 7: Several factors distinguish a trend from a fad; Figure 8: Convenience is driven by the need to create more time for oneself; Figure 9: There are more than 15 major convenience orientated trends influencing FMCG consumers; Figure 10: There are at least two broad dimensions of convenience; Figure 11: Variable holiday entitlement and a failure to utilize the full entitlement is prevalent across the globe and reflects the ongoing struggle to be 'leisure time maximizers'; Figure 12: Datamonitor has identified five major categories for individuals' time-spend which vary in influence across the countries and regions covered in this report; Figure 13: European parents are generally happy with how much time they spend with their children, but European citizens are less content about their leisure time overall; Figure 14: Perhaps reflecting the changing nature of society, approaching two thirds of Brazilians believe it is difficult to find time to relax-considerably higher than the sentiment expressed by Americans; Figure 15: Less than a third of Korean parents believe they are spending enough time with their children which is considerably lower than the global average; Figure 16: Gulf citizens are happier with the amount of time they spend with their children than they are with the amount of leisure time they have; Figure 17: Time saving products and services have become increasingly important to European consumers in the past two years which is highly reflective of the Quick-Fix Society trend; Figure 18: Convenience benefits heavily direct the general personal care choices of Europeans, but have a more mid-ranging influence in other sectors; Figure 19: Europeans are concerned about whether beauty product claims live up to the marketing promises and are inherently skeptical about the anti-aging claims made by beauty brands; Figure 20: Performance claims made by household and laundry products/brands are not deemed credible by the overwhelming majority of Europeans; Figure 21: Convenience products are particularly sought after in Brazil, which is a reflection of the evolving consumerist society developing in the country; Figure 22: Consumers in both Brazil and the US believe that convenience is a primary influencing factor in their general purchasing personal care and beauty products; Figure 23: Performance claims made by household and laundry products/brands enjoy more trust among US and Brazilian consumers, but a trust void is nonetheless apparent; Figure 24: Anti-aging product claims are more trusted by Brazilian than US consumers while shoppers in both countries are concerned about efficacy on a general level; Figure 25: The overwhelming majority of Chinese and Indian consumers rely heavily on products and services that can save them time; Figure 26: Indian consumers in particular have come to value convenience as a priority for their CPG choices; Figure 27: Australians are particularly skeptical about anti-aging claims made by beauty brands; Figure 28: Indian consumers express more trust in the performance claims of FMCG brands; Figure 29: Using time saving products and services has become significantly more important to Gulf consumers in the last couple of years; Figure 30: A general dislike of carrying out household chores is driving the market for convenient products; Figure 31: Portability is an influential factor in the choice of general personal care products for around a quarter of Europeans; Figure 32: New product development activity highlights how Europeans are attracted to the idea of having portable solutions to hygiene problems; Figure 33: The expectations about portable beauty products in the US and Brazil markedly differ; Figure 34: Portable beauty products continue to emerge across the range of personal care categories; Figure 35: Portable personal care products reduce the perceived hassle of traveling for image-conscious consumers; Figure 36: Portable beauty products continue to emerge across the range of personal care categories; Figure 37: In Asia, convenient personal care products are easy to use and lightweight; Figure 38: There are only a few targeted on-the-go personal care products in and around the MENA region; Figure 39: In Europe, only Germans reported spending less time on their personal appearance in 2008 which suggests that results-driven consumers are not too pre-occupied with simplified beauty regimes; Figure 40: In both the US and Brazil, the trend is towards spending more time on improving appearance rather than actually simplifying beauty regimes; Figure 41: A multitude of beauty products offer quick and simple ways of improving personal appearance; Figure 42: Indians far surpass the global average for the stated growing propensity to spend more time on their personal appearance in 2008; Figure 43: A majority of Europeans, and particularly Russians, believe that minimizing the time spent performing housework is important; Figure 44: Europeans want household cleaning and laundry products that are easy to use, more so than whether it saves time; Figure 45: Despite the high penetration of dishwashers in European households, the majority of Europeans still find it more convenient (or cost effective) to wash dishes by hand; Figure 46: Household products have become more advanced in order to make everyday tasks easier; Figure 47: Italian consumers in particular are not adverse to having other people do their housework for them; Figure 48: Almost all of Brazilians want products that can make doing housework quicker while minimizing housework time-spend is an important benefit sought by two-thirds of US consumers; Figure 49: More than three quarters of Brazilians want household care products that are both quick and easy to use, whereas US consumers appear to be more pre-occupied with time saving benefits; Figure 50: Americans do not use dishwashers on a daily basis much more than the global average of consumers; Figure 51: More than half of Brazilians and a third of Americans would rather pay somebody else to do their housework rather than do it themselves; Figure 52: With widespread agreement that they do not have the desired time to spend doing housework, consumers across the Asia Pacific region consider it highly important to minimize the amount of time spent doing it; Figure 53: Only a third of Japanese consumers are highly influenced by the time-saving benefits of household cleaning and laundry products; Figure 54: Indian and Chinese consumers both still wash clothes more regularly by hand than by machine; Figure 55: Attitudinally, Indians and Koreans prefer to outsource their household chores to other people; Figure 56: Ease of use and time saving benefits heavily influence the household care choices made by consumers in the Gulf region; Figure 57: On-the-go household products provide portable convenience in the MENA region; Figure 58: Improvements in the quality and healthfulness of convenience foods and beverages are making consumers more likely to consider them as viable options; Figure 59: More than a third of Europeans microwave meals up to four times a week; Figure 60: Microwave meals are extremely popular in the US due to the convenience that they offer; Figure 61: Nearly a third of Indian and Australian consumers microwave meals at least five times a week, but Koreans still prefer a more traditional method of preparation; Figure 62: Easy-to-make meals for consumers in Asia Pacific are becoming highly prevalent; Figure 63: A range of quick and easy convenience foods are available to consumers in and around the MENA region; Figure 64: The prevalence of scratch cooking five or more times a week in Europe is relatively high although there have been some variable patterns in stated frequencies in some countries in 2008-09; Figure 65: Pressures to save and an increasing focus on health has forced Europeans to move away from more expensive convenient consumption options; Figure 66: Around a third of consumers in the Americas are still scratch cooking five or more times a week; Figure 67: At least half of consumers in the Americas are cooking more from scratch or with fewer convenience foods in 2009 compared to 2008; Figure 68: Consumption of pre-prepared meals is particularly prominent in Korea, although the economic crisis has sparked a resurgence in scratch cooking recently; Figure 69: Given the tendency of Koreans to consume a lot of convenience foods, it is little surprise that their habits are most impacted by the global economic crisis; Figure 70: Just under a quarter of Gulf consumers seldom or never cook from scratch; Figure 71: Generally, Gulf consumers are making equal efforts to cut down on take-away meals and cook from scratch in order to save money; Figure 72: European consumers are making a large effort to eat out less often and consume fewer takeaways; Figure 73: Consumers in the Americas are making more effort than the global average to eat out less and consume fewer take-away meals in order to save money; Figure 74: Take-away meals eaten at home are far more popular in India than anywhere else globally; Figure 75: Gulf consumers are cutting down on general eating-away-from-home occasions more than on take-away meals specifically; Figure 76: Many consumers do not feel that they have the time to prepare and eat 'three square meals a day'; Figure 77: Russian, German and UK consumers are the most likely to skip a morning meal; Figure 78: Nearly a fifth of Brazilians regularly miss evening meals-more than three times the global average; Figure 79: Indians are particularly prone to skipping meals in the evening; Figure 80: On-the-go consumption occurs when consumers are engaged in other activities or in environments not particularly suited to food or drink consumption; Figure 81: More than a third of consumers in France, Germany, Italy and Russia eat a meal on-the-go meals at least once a week; Figure 82: Two in five US consumers eat on on-the-go meals more than once a week which is more frequent than consumers in Brazil; Figure 83: In the Asia Pacific region, Koreans are the most prevalent eaters of meals when on-the-go; Figure 84: On-the-go consumption is becoming a way of life for Saudi Arabian and UAE consumers; Figure 85: For around a third of Europeans, seeking out healthier convenience foods and drinks has become more important recently; Figure 86: Several products are positioned as both healthy and convenient; Figure 87: Consumers in the Americas have become increasingly demanding that foods and beverages satisfy their needs for both convenient gratification and health benefits; Figure 88: There are an increasing number of food and beverages which are both convenient and healthy; Figure 89: Indian and Chinese consumers are highly interested in healthier convenience foods and drinks; Figure 90: Over a third of Europeans are highly attentive to the portion size of the meals and snacks they consume, and a quarter are looking to regulate consumption through regulating this; Figure 91: Portion size is a big issue in Brazil, with nearly two in five looking to cut down on the amount of food and beverages that they consume as part of a meal; Figure 92: Chinese, Japanese and Korean consumers appear generally satisfied with the size of portions that they consume so are not making concerted efforts to eat and drink smaller portions; Figure 93: Gulf consumers are making more attempt than the global average to eat and drink smaller portions, although this is driven more so by health considerations than the convenience of light meals; Figure 94: Spanish consumers snack more than any others in Europe, but also feel the most guilt about their behavior; Figure 95: Although Spanish consumers snack more often than any other Europeans, they also feel the most guilt about it; Figure 96: Brazilian consumers snack more in the morning, while US consumers tend to favor the afternoon for their snacking occasions; Figure 97: Guilt expressed by consumers in the Americas is in line with the global average; Figure 98: Indian consumers feel a considerable amount of guilt about their snacking habits; Figure 99: Indian consumer express the most guilt about snacking of any consumers in Asia Pacific; Figure 100: Gulf consumers snack more than the global average in the morning, but feel less guilt about this; Figure 101: Top-up shopping has made buying groceries a more efficient experience for some consumers; Figure 102: Europeans in several countries attach considerable importance to grocery stores with convenient opening hours while store proximity to their home is highly appreciated across the region; Figure 103: US consumers want grocery stores close to their homes, whereas Brazilians are more attracted by convenient opening hours; Figure 104: Consumers in Asia Pacific generally want grocery stores to be close to their homes; Figure 105: Gulf consumers are influenced by store opening hours more than the average global consumer; Figure 106: In Europe, top-up shops are particularly prominent in Russia, Spain and the UK; Figure 107: Top-up shopping is becoming more popular among Europeans; Figure 108: Europeans prefer to do their top-up shopping at larger outlets like supermarkets; Figure 109: Dutch consumers are considerably different from other Europeans in that only a quarter shop for large numbers of groceries at a supermarket or hypermarket; Figure 110: Brazilians are more likely to conduct top-up shopping rather than buy in bulk; Figure 111: Brazilians prefer to top-up shop from small local c-stores, whereas US consumers do a higher proportion in larger scale store formats; Figure 112: The relatively small percentage of Brazilians embarking on large grocery shopping trips indicates that consumers here prefer to top-up shop at more frequent intervals; Figure 113: Two thirds of Indian consumers have become more reliant on grocery shopping since the beginning of 2008; Figure 114: Only Indians prefer to top-up shop at small local grocers compared to larger supermarkets; Figure 115: Australian and Japanese consumers overwhelmingly prefer to perform large grocery shopping trips at supermarkets or hypermarkets; Figure 116: Gulf consumers are unlike consumers in other regions in that they prefer to top-up shop at smaller local grocers; Figure 117: Gulf consumers are more likely to buy a large number of groceries from smaller c-stores than those globally; Figure 118: Europeans most actively monitor new food products, but generally are not on the lookout for new alcoholic drinks; Figure 119: German consumers in particular have a targeted approach to shopping because they know what products they want and where they are located; Figure 120: French consumers believe they are too rushed to read food labels, whereas Russians take a more relaxed, considered approach to shopping; Figure 121: A quarter of consumers in Brazil and the US actively lookout for new food products; Figure 122: Consumers in both Brazil and the US tend to adopt a relatively disciplined approach to shopping; Figure 123: Opinion among Brazilian and US consumers about whether they have enough time to read labels is heavily polarized; Figure 124: Consumers in Asia Pacific are more attentive to new products than in both Europe and the Americas although a passive mentality still characterizes 'auto pilot' shoppers in the region too; Figure 125: Consumers in China, India and Japan are comparably more prone to wandering grocery in no particular order; Figure 126: Indian and South Korean consumers believe that there is not enough time when shopping to read and understand food labels; Figure 127: Over a third of Gulf consumers adopt a mission focused approach to shopping; Figure 128: The propensity to purchase groceries online in Europe is still low; Figure 129: Brazilian consumers are using the internet as a convenient method of shopping; Figure 130: With the exception of Australians, consumers in Asia Pacific have utilized the internet with increasing regularity to facilitate shopping in different product sectors; Figure 131: More than three quarters of UAE and Saudi Arabian consumers never use the internet to purchase groceries; Figure 132: There are differences between consumer values and attitudes

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