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another form of connectedness within local communities. Mintel’s 35-market consumer research study shows that 24 per cent of surveyed consumers in Thailand are willing to trade up on beauty, personal care and household products to support their local community. For brands as a long-term consideration and strategy, community relationships should be high on the agenda, while potential new consumer groups, fresh sets of networks and talents should not be overlooked as future brand contributors. A new era of trust Trust is the new value. Beauty must move beyond selling on brand names, which no longer reflects how consumers buy or trade up. The ‘who’ factor doesn’t play out as strongly as the ‘how’, the ‘what’ and the ‘why’: how is this product made, what is the purpose and value, and why should I buy it? The spectrum of value is constantly being stretched in the consumer’s perspective – from what used to be dictated by prices, to now: convenience, experience, emotions, purpose and community. Brands that fail to identify their value positioning won’t survive this trial, even if the current scenario works to their advantage. Constant business transformation can result in short-lived results, especially if brands transform merely to find solutions to ‘these circumstances’ – ie, the pandemic. Only when brands reinvent both the ‘how’ and the ‘what’ factors when it comes to the products consumers are consuming in beauty – by using their core value(s) as compasses instead of sails – will we see long term business sustainability. All this can’t be done without considering consumers’ behaviour, emotions, and the ever-changing surroundings in which they now find themselves immersed – still strangely and unwittingly even a year and more since Covid-19 emerged. INDUSTRY INSIGHT About Sharon Kwek As an Associate Director at Mintel, Sharon Kwek is responsible for providing regional trend insights and analysis in beauty and personal care categories for key clients within the business, with a focus on the South APAC region. Sharon brings more than 10 years of experience in the FMCG industry, helping manufacturers, retailers and brand owners to develop their beauty businesses in Southeast Asia. About Mintel Mintel is the expert in what consumers want and why. As the world’s leading market intelligence agency, its analysis of consumers, markets, product innovation and competitive landscapes provides a unique perspective on global and local economies. Since 1972, Mintel’s predictive analytics and expert recommendations have enabled clients to make better business decisions faster. Our purpose is to help businesses and people grow. To find out how we do that, visit: mintel.com. MAY, 2021 RETAIL WORLD 23