Global Consumer Trends: Comfort

Published by: Datamonitor

Published: Sep. 29, 2009

Table of Contents

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

Trend-tracking insight 1: mega-trends can be classified in two ways according to desirable product/service benefits and societal complexities

Trend-tracking insight 2: trends are aligned with pre-existing, but evolving human values, attitudes, needs and behaviors

Trend-tracking insight 3: mega-trends can be broken down into trends and sub-trends to provide structure and clarity at a time of 'information overload'

Trend-tracking insight 4: manufacturers, retailers and researchers/futurologists perpetuate trends

Trend-tracking insight 5: adopting a broader, global perspective to trend-tracking facilitates better decision making by overcoming 'category myopia'

Trend-tracking insight 6: trends have longer-term implications than fads and can be categorized by evolvement

Trend-tracking insight 7: for every trend there is a 'counter-trend' while 'trend-crossover' is also an important phenomena

Takeouts and implications: a trend framework boosts the quality and frequency of insight generation ensuring maximum return from the broader market research processes in place

THE FUTURE DECODED: DECIPHERING THE COMFORT MEGA-TREND

MEGA-TREND SYNOPSIS: Consumers want safety, simplicity, trust and indulgence in response to rising stress and uncertainty

TREND: Cautious Consumerism: many individuals are concerned about the direction of society, are distrustful and skeptical of progress and change

SUB-TREND: Societal Pessimism: many global citizens bemoan the direction of society on a global, regional and national level

Europeans have a negative opinion of the direction of national developments

Consumers in the Americas display varying degrees of satisfaction with their country's direction

Asia Pacific citizens, having mostly experienced rising economic prosperity in recent years, are generally more optimistic about the direction of society than the global average

Despite enormous social change, consumers in the UAE and Saudi Arabia are largely content with the direction of society and are generally not skeptical of the benefits of economic development

Key takeouts and implications: consumers feel somewhat let down by institutions and as a result are less confident and trusting

SUB-TREND: Skeptical Consumerism: a ongoing 'trust void' exists between organizations and institutions and individuals who rely on them

Europeans are deeply skeptical about commercial enterprises and the specifics of product claims

Much cynicism exists among consumers in the Americas when evaluating product claims

Developing nations in the Asia Pacific region are more likely to express trust in manufacturer claims

UAE and Saudi consumers are relatively skeptical of corporate intent

Key takeouts and implications: consumers do not inherently believe that all product claims are truthful

SUB-TREND: Risk Aversion: fears exist over (new) processes and progression associated with consumer products

Europeans generally believe that functional food and beverages are better/safer than GM food but there is skepticism towards both

In North and South America consumers are wary of product formulations

Asia Pacific consumers are particularly concerned about the ingredients that go into products

MENA consumers are becoming more interested in food safety

Key takeouts and implications: consumer understanding of what goes into food, beverages, personal care and household care products has never been greater

SUB-TREND: Technophobia: as consumers embrace digital lifestyles concerns exist about an over-reliance on technology

The majority of Europeans cannot be described as technophobic or negative about progress associated with science and technology but they do hold reservations about the future

The majority of consumers in the Americas are comfortable with technology and the positive impact it is having on society although there is a perception of over-reliance

Consumers in the Asia Pacific region are some of the most connected globally

Gulf consumers are becoming more reliant on technology

Key takeouts and implications: technophobia is not particularly prevalent globally although there are certain contexts where individuals can adopt a more negative mentality

TREND: Cocooning: the global financial crisis and the ongoing desire to 'shut off' from the wider world continues to shape global consumer attitudes and behaviors

SUB-TREND: Blinkered Optimism: many consumers adopt an overly optimistic view of their health as they shut themselves off from reality and they also look to outsource blame elsewhere

Europeans believe their diets are healthier than they actually are

Satisfaction with personal health is fairly high among consumers in the Americas

Perceptions of health status vary considerably across the Asia Pacific region

UAE and Saudi consumers can be very blinkered when assessing personal health and apportion much of the blame for aspects of poor health on others

Key takeouts and implications: some consumers refuse to acknowledge and/or accept responsibility for lifestyle and personal problems such as poor health

SUB-TREND: Insperiences: bringing third places home and the resurgence of home-based consumption occasions

Europeans are creating more 'insperiences' by consuming more home prepared meals

Consumers in the Americas are spending more time entertaining at home

Consumers in Asia Pacific are eating, drinking and pampering more frequently at home

Consumer insperiences are increasingly common in both the UAE and Saudi Arabia

Key takeouts and implications: as consumers cocoon, they demand higher quality 'insperiences' that act as 'home comforts'

SUB-TREND: House-Proud Cocooning: as consumers seek sanctuary in the comfort of their homes, they become extra pre-occupied with upkeep

Europeans display a certain pride in improving their own homes

Brazilians particularly value the appearance of their homes while US attitudes are more in line with the global average

Traditional Asia Pacific attitudes still prevail when it comes to being houseproud

UAE and Saudi consumers are very proud of their homes and are increasingly looking to DIY solutions to keep up appearances

Key takeouts and implications: as consumers spend longer in their homes, they become increasingly disposed to being houseproud

SUB-TREND: Homeworking: people are taking advantage of structural changes in labor markets and connective technology to embrace more flexible, home-based work

Connective technology has made it possible for more Europeans to work from home

Working from home is on the increase, particularly in North America

Individuals in the Asia Pacific region are working more frequently from home, setting up small offices in which to perform their daily tasks

Home-working in the UAE and Saudi has been limited by labor laws

Key takeouts and implications: homeworking has been made considerably easier by improvements in the quality and reliability of connective technology

SUB-TREND: Home-grown: consumers are increasingly demonstrating a desire to become product cultivators

There has been an increase in the number of Europeans looking to grow their own produce

There is an emergent trend of home-growing produce in the Americas

Consumers are cutting back on eating out of the home and replacing this with more home-grown consumption options

Key takeouts and implications: consumers are looking to save money during the economic crisis by becoming less reliant on store-bought groceries

TREND: Ethnocentrism: ethnocentric preferences exacerbate favorability of national or local products and brands

SUB-TREND: Localism: consumers are embracing the 'locavore' movement

Europeans are demonstrating a strong interest in consuming local produce

Consumers in the Americas show considerable interest in products' origins

Locality is very important to consumers across Asia Pacific, but less influential in terms of routinely guiding actual choices

Localism is highly prevalent in the Middle East, though arguably more pronounced in Saudi Arabia than in the UAE

Key takeouts and implications: ethnocentric consumers prefer local products to ones from abroad

SUB-TREND: Ethnocentric tendencies can lead to the sporadic or longer-term boycotting or avoidance of 'foreign' products

Europeans distrust grocery products that come from overseas

Views on foreign products and ingredients are somewhat mixed in the Americas

Asia Pacific consumers display a large amount of mistrust in foreign ingredients

Middle Eastern consumers are now unlikely to avoid Western produce because of regionally unsympathetic tastes or flavors, but periodic political and cultural incidents ensure that boycotts of Western products remain relatively commonplace

Key takeouts and implications: consumers inherently distrust products and ingredients which come from foreign lands

SUB-TREND: Ethnic tensions and polarized attitudes towards immigration and 'outside influences' are prevalent across regions

European attitudes to immigration vary based on circumstantial issues, but it is seen as a problematic and contentious issue by majorities across the region

Americans are increasingly distrusted by consumers in Latin America

Chinese consumers in particular have misgivings about people from other faiths or nations

In both the UAE and Saudi Arabia immigration concerns are on the rise

Key takeouts and implications: despite efforts to encourage multiculturalism, tensions between consumers of differing ethnicities still exist across the globe

TREND: Simplifying and Downshifting: consumers often aspire to a simplified, less complicated lifestyle and shopping experience

SUB-TREND: Choice Paralysis and Habitual Consumption: consumer confusion and choosing familiar brands/products

Europeans say they are influenced by choice but seem to be affected by choice paralysis nevertheless

The key aspects of choice paralysis are evident among consumers in the Americas

Consumers in Asia Pacific experience choice paralysis just like other consumers globally

Choice paralysis is also evident in the Middle East

Key takeouts and implications: consumers often feel stifled by the amount of choice on offer

SUB-TREND: Selective attention: the 'attention economy' highlights the growing difficulty of engaging consumers

The vast majority of Europeans believe that there is too much advertising today

A strong feeling exists among consumers in the Americas that there is too much advertising

Consumers in Asia Pacific, like those from other regions, express negative sentiment towards the amount of advertising today

Regional consumers are unreceptive to large amounts of advertising

Key takeouts and implications: marketers are facing an increasingly challenging environment to get consumers' attention

SUB-TREND: The search for simplicity reflects the need to reduce physical and informational clutter and complexity in their life

Time poor Europeans want simple solutions to problems in order to create more time

Consumers in the Americas exhibit a strong desire to simplify their lifestyles

Asia Pacific consumers have prioritized simplicity at a stressful time

UAE and Saudi consumers want a de-cluttered life

Key takeouts and implications: many consumers are increasingly seeking to simplify life and will value products that align to this ideology

SUB-TREND: Austere Consumerism: consumers are buying in more tempered and considered manner, especially with the global financial crisis changing the outlook on consumption

Eastern and Western Europeans display contrasting attitudes towards materialism

Consumers in the Americas have become wary of materialism and credit facilities

Consumers in Asia Pacific are particularly materialistic

Falling consumer expenditure has not led to genuine 'austere consumerism' in the UAE or Saudi Arabia

Key takeouts and implications: consumers have contrasting views about austere consumerism depending on location

SUB-TREND: Family First: improving work/life balance and slowing down to facilitate more and better quality family time continue to be important priorities

Some Europeans are happy with the amount of time they spend with their families but others are not

Consumers in the Americas are increasingly prioritizing time spent with family and friends

Consumers in Asia Pacific believe there is plenty of scope to improve the quality of their work/life balance

Increased leisure time, including family life, have become dramatically more important to UAE and Saudi consumers over the past two years or so

Key takeouts and implications: consumers are making greater efforts to ensure that they spend as much time with their families as possible

TREND: Nostalgic Consumerism and the 'Return to Real'

SUB-TREND: Buying nostalgic brands/embracing retro design

Cravings for nostalgia have built around Europe in the past few years

The appeal of nostalgia was not particularly evident in the US just a few years ago

Nostalgic products are becoming increasing popular in Asia Pacific, especially in Japan

While most consumers in the UAE and Saudi Arabia are too young to be emotionally influenced by 'retro' products an adulterated form of nostalgic consumerism is still evident

Key takeouts and implications: nostalgia is a relevant trend for consumers due to the comfort that it provides but its popularity is at the mercy of wider social situations

SUB-TREND: Traditional Consumption: consumers continue to embrace traditional favorites

Some Europeans are seeking out more exciting flavors while others are returning to traditional ones

Many consumers in the Americas display a desire for traditional and 'safe' flavors in food and beverages

Rather than look for traditional flavors, consumers in Asia Pacific are favoring more exotic options

Traditional, regional, tastes are still popular in the Middle East

Key takeouts and implications: consumers are torn between returning to the traditional or seeking out new experiences

SUB-TREND: The re-emergence of scratch cooking and 'home-made' products

Europeans are embracing the scratch cooking movement

Cooking behaviors are changing in the Americas as more consumers return to scratch-cooking

Consumers in Korea in particular are looking to cook more from scratch

UAE and Saudi consumers are cooking at home

Key takeouts and implications: consumers are rediscovering scratch cooking for a number of reasons

APPENDIX

Definitions

Methodology

Further reading and references

Ask the analyst

Datamonitor consulting

Disclaimer

Abstract

• 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-by-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

• Understand the significance of the different Comfort-aligned trends across territories and FMCG sectors to help support market diversification plans
• 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

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