Global Consumer Trends: Age Complexity

Table of Contents

OVERVIEW

• Catalyst
• Summary

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 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 highlighting that trend frameworks 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 and 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: DECIPERING THE AGE COMPLEXITY MEGA-TREND

• MEGA-TREND SYNOPSIS: Age-related attitudes and behaviors are polarizing, reinforcing and defying stereotypes
• TREND: The trend for "down-aging" continues to shape consumers' attitudes and behaviors
  • SUB-TREND: Consumers are attempting to prolong or revisit their youth
  • Key takeouts and implications: Extended youth and greater commonality in consumers' attitudes and behaviors offer opportunities to grow demand
  • SUB-TREND: Consumers are shifting their reference points towards age definition
  • Key takeouts and implications: traditional age definitions are in decline, adding to the down aging trend
• TREND: Fear of aging is driving ' age anxiety' and proactive attempts to prevent the manifestations of aging
  • SUB-TREND: Many consumers are anxious about aging and age portrayal
  • Key takeouts and implications: Aging is a cause for concern among consumers based on both societal values and pressures, and personal fears
  • SUB-TREND: Consumers are increasingly taking preventative steps in face of the fear of aging
  • Key takeouts and implications: preventing the signs of aging is itself undergoing a process of down-aging as ever younger consumers are motivated to respond preemptively
• TREND: Age as a badge of identity: consumers are also embracing the aging process
  • SUB-TREND: Age pride is a counter-trend to the fear of aging
  • Key takeouts and implications: More positive views of aging necessitate greater understanding and nuanced targeting of marketing messages
  • SUB-TREND: Older consumers are showing adventurousness that breaks with commonly held preconceptions
  • Key takeouts and implications: stereotypes of older consumers as unadventurous can threaten to beguile marketers out of potential sales opportunities
  • SUB-TREND: The paradox between age pride and fear of aging explains why older consumers do not relate to many adverts
  • Key takeouts and implications: marketers need to understand the nuances within the Senior age group and the changing ideas of what aging means within it
• TREND: The speed and extent of ' consumer socialization' has increased
  • SUB-TREND: Brand awareness and associated demand is manifesting at ever younger ages
  • Key takeouts and implications: Targeting Kids can be a dangerous game for marketers but offers long-term advantages
  • SUB-TREND: Pester power demonstrates the significant influence of children on household spending
  • Key takeouts and implications: pestering parents yields results but engendering greater collaboration and common ground between them and their children in purchase decisions can yield greater positivity
  • SUB-TREND: Kids' autonomous spending power is rising although parents still pick up the tab for bigger ticket items
  • Key takeouts and implications: understanding when and how Kids transition into more independent consumers is key for marketers
  • SUB-TREND: Appearance consciousness is impacting younger cohorts
  • Key takeouts and implications: sensitivity to Kids' and Teens' appearance concerns is essential
  • SUB-TREND: Kids are increasingly experiencing concerns usually associated with adulthood
  • Key takeouts and implications: look to achieve balance between feeding the KGUY trend and childhood needs

APPENDIX

• Definitions
• Methodology
• Further reading and references
• Ask the analyst
• Datamonitor consulting
• Disclaimer

FIGURES

• Figure: Datamonitor' s mega-trends are having a long-term and substantive impact on the marketing landscape and can be grouped into two categories
• Figure: Consumer behavior and the innovations targeting it inevitably fit into a ' trend hierarchy'
• Figure: Trend tracking can be a source of (comparative) competitive analysis
• Figure: Datamonitor' s mega-trend framework helps set the agenda for the specific topics covered in the New Consumer Insight (NCI) research stream
• Figure: Trend development is dictated by both ' consumer pull' and ' manufacturer push' and Datamonitor offers the intelligence tools to capitalize on this reaity
• Figure: In a consumerist global culture, the broad consumption spheres/segments transcend borders
• Figure: Several factors distinguish a trend from a fad
• Figure: Consumers' age-related attitudes and behaviors are polarizing, reinforcing and defying stereotypes
• Figure: Down aging reflects both the desire to hold onto aspects of youth out of nostalgia and also the reality of consumers feeling younger than their actual ages
• Figure: The Swedish have the lowest toleration for consumers in their late 20s living in the parental home
• Figure: Consumers of all ages in the Americas have comparably favorable views of children remaining in the family home until their late-20s
• Figure: Asian family-oriented culture influences the positive views towards twenty-somethings living at home
• Figure: Consumers' aspirational ages reflect their fear of aging and desire to be younger, as well as down-aged attitudes
• Figure: The markers of old age are shifting towards issues and behaviors associated with greater ages
• Figure: Many older consumers in Asia Pacific do not feel their age
• Figure: Consumers' anxieties about aging are translating into attempts to seek preventative measures
• Figure: Older age groups feel less pressured to look good in Europe
• Figure: Dutch consumers under 25 are the most satisfied with their appearance
• Figure: Looking one' s best in day-to-day life is held in high regard across the full age range among Europeans
• Figure: Russian and German consumers are particularly prone to think attractive people have more opportunities in life
• Figure: Younger consumers are more satisfied with their bodies than older consumers in Europe
• Figure: UK under 25s are particularly prone to feel that beauty adverts make them feel self conscious
• Figure: The over 50s are less satisfied with their health than younger consumers in Europe
• Figure: The amount of pressure that consumers feel to look good diminishes with age in the Americas
• Figure: Levels of satisfaction with personal appearance show differing trends in the US and Brazil
• Figure: Looking your best in day-to-day life is important to consumers of all ages in the Americas
• Figure: The majority of all age groups in the Americas agree that physically attractive people have better opportunities in life
• Figure: Satisfaction with body shape is low among all age groups in the Americas
• Figure: Younger age groups are more likely to feel self-conscious when presented with personal care advertisements
• Figure: Younger consumers, particularly in South Korea, tend to feel under pressure to look good
• Figure: Indian consumers are the most satisfied with their appearance in Asia Pacific
• Figure: South Korean under 25s feel the most pressure to look their best
• Figure: Younger South Koreans feel most strongly that attractive people have more opportunities in life
• Figure: Dissatisfaction with body shape grows with age most markedly in China
• Figure: Middle aged consumers are particularly self conscious about beauty portrayal in adverts in Japan and India
• Figure: Older consumers in Japan are the least happy with their overall health
• Figure: High levels of satisfaction with appearance characterize Gulf consumers across all age groups
• Figure: Looking your best in day-to-day life is also valued highly by a large majority of Gulf consumers
• Figure: Belief in attractiveness affording greater opportunities in life rises with age in the Gulf region
• Figure: Saudi over-50s stand out as the most satisfied consumers globally with their body weight and shape
• Figure: High levels of satisfaction with health later in life belies the work still required on public health education in the Gulf region
• Figure: Younger consumers spend more time on their appearance than older people in Europe
• Figure: Younger consumers in Europe are more inclined to consider cosmetic surgery
• Figure: Greying hair is of more concern to the over 50s in Europe
• Figure: Thinning hair is not actively tackled by many Europeans
• Figure: A high proportion of Europeans in all age groups value taking care of their skin
• Figure: Older consumers place higher importance on anti-aging skincare products in Europe
• Figure: Anti-aging cosmetics are perceived as more important by the over 50s in Europe
• Figure: The majority of consumers in Europe strive to eat healthily
• Figure: The importance of exercise increases with age in Europe
• Figure: Beauty foods are more appealing to younger consumers in Europe
• Figure: US Young Adults are ahead of the international average in increasing time spend on personal appearance
• Figure: Brazilians are considerably above the global average in terms of their openness to cosmetic surgery
• Figure: Graying hair is a below average concern to US consumers but appearance conscious Brazilians become particularly concerned in Mid-Life
• Figure: Thinning hair is also an above-average concern to Brazilians, contrasting their US peers
• Figure: Skincare is a consistently important issue across all ages in the US and Brazil
• Figure: Anti-aging benefits in skincare have particular appeal among Brazilians from Mid-Life onwards
• Figure: Anti-aging cosmetics are similarly popular to their skincare equivalents among Brazilian Mid-Lifers
• Figure: Health eating messages have been particularly well received among older Brazilians
• Figure: Exercise is seen as important across all age groups in the Americas
• Figure: Beauty foods and drinks are particularly attractive to appearance conscious and experimentally open Brazilians
• Figure: Younger consumers spend the most time on their appearance in Asia Pacific
• Figure: Cosmetic surgery would be considered by under a third of consumers in Asia Pacific
• Figure: Chinese and Indian consumers are more interested in products for grey hair than others in Asia Pacific
• Figure: Products for thinning hair are of interest to many consumers in India and China
• Figure: Skin care is perceived as an important ritual for many Asia Pacific consumers
• Figure: Anti-aging skincare is particularly valued by 35-49 year old Asia Pacific consumers
• Figure: Japanese consumers are less concerned with anti-aging cosmetics than other nations
• Figure: Older consumers in Asia Pacific generally make more efforts to eat healthily than the young
• Figure: Exercise is perceived as being of importance by all ages in Asia Pacific
• Figure: Younger consumers generally find beauty foods the most appealing in Asia Pacific
• Figure: Consumers in the UAE of all ages are above the global average in seeing skincare as important
• Figure: Anti-aging benefits in skincare are particularly important to Saudi and UAE consumers of all ages
• Figure: Anti-aging cosmetics grow in importance with age among Gulf consumers
• Figure: Healthy eating is actively pursued by high numbers of older Gulf consumers
• Figure: Age pride is strong among consumers across the age spectrum although older consumers feel that their needs are not being met effectively
• Figure: Many older consumers are content with their age in Europe but the UK stands out due to the rapid decline in satisfaction with age over time
• Figure: Self expression is important across the age range in Europe
• Figure: US consumers are exceptional in their dissatisfaction with their present ages
• Figure: Individuality and self-expression remain very important throughout the lives of consumers in the Americas
• Figure: Japanese consumers aged over 50 are the least happy with their age
• Figure: Self expression is important to many consumers in Asia Pacific
• Figure: Many older consumers, particularly in Sweden, value experiencing new things
• Figure: Older consumers in Germany consider trying new things to be important to their wellbeing
• Figure: Russian over-50 consumers are particularly desirous of finding more excitement in life, deeply contrasting the low priority accorded to this in Germany and the UK
• Figure: Emerging market consumers in Brazil of all ages show strong affinity for trying new things
• Figure: Brazilians also increasingly place importance on new experiences as a driver of wellbeing as they age
• Figure: Trends in Brazil and the US are contrasting as Brazilians continue to seek more excitement in life as they age
• Figure: Many older consumers in Asia Pacific want to experience new things
• Figure: New experiences are perceived to be important to the wellbeing of many older consumers in Asia Pacific
• Figure: A high proportion of older Asia Pacific consumers are desirous of finding more excitement in life
• Figure: Many consumers in Asia Pacific believe that they should reward themselves in retirement for the years of hard work providing for others
• Figure: Older Russians place the most importance on brands that match their outlook on life
• Figure: Credibility remains low for anti-aging products among over-50 Europeans in particular
• Figure: Brazilian consumers contrast their US and global peers in the consistent desire to choose brands that match their attitudes and outlook as they get older
• Figure: Anti-aging claims have particular credibility among younger consumers in the Americas preempting the signs of aging
• Figure: Older consumers are not as keen on brands that match their lifestyles as other age groups in Asia Pacific
• Figure: Credibility for anti aging claims remains low among Australian and Japanese over 50 year old consumers
• Figure: Consumer socialization is occurring at younger ages as "Kids Grow Up Young"
• Figure: Pester power is an important factor in childhood market dynamics and Kids' influence on household spending
• Figure: There are differences between consumer values and attitudes