Euromonitor International has revealed the trends that it believes will define consumer behaviour and influence business strategies this year.
The global market research company says the covid pandemic ‘created, influenced or accelerated’ each trend featured in a new report, ‘Top 10 Global Consumer Trends 2021′.
It says that in 2021, consumers:
* Expect purpose-driven initiatives that support the triple bottom line – people, planet and profits. Nearly 70% of professionals expect consumers to be more concerned about sustainability than before covid-19
* Desire the ease of on-the-go, impulse and spontaneous occasions and simplicities of pre-pandemic life
* Reconnect with nature and turn to open-air venues for leisure and to safely socialise
* Use digital tools to stay connected at home and to facilitate safer procedures in brick-and-mortar outlets
* Gain new-found flexibility, scheduling activities in a non-conventional order to suit individual time demands
* Distrust media and governments, defying misinformation and putting their needs first. In 2020, 29% of global consumers were actively involved in political and social issues
* Demand contactless services, exceptional sanitation standards and products that enhance hygiene and immunity
* Reassess priorities and identities in pursuit of a more fulfilled life and improved mental resilience. Depression and mental health had a moderate or severe impact on 73% of global consumers’ everyday lives last year
* Budget cautiously and buy value-added and affordable products and services
* Find a new work-life balance, as remote collaboration redefines the traditional office environment. More than half of global consumers previously had a strict boundary between work or school and personal life.
Alison Angus, head of lifestyles at Euromonitor International, said: “2021 will be a pivotal year. Tailoring strategies to these emerging consumer trends will empower businesses to endure the unexpected and overcome adversities.”
