Youthfulness

Trend - Restaurants in East Asia and North America are using curry as a base for different types of foods. The traditional South Asian dish is only recently growing in use in handheld comfort foods in the West. Burgers, hotdogs, and sandwiches are being served with spicy, sweet, or savory curry.

Insight - Regional flavors continue to gain popularity outside of their respective regions as consumers in multicultural cities broaden their tastes to new dishes. The cross-cultural nature of cities leads to iterations on traditional dishes and flavors, often combining multiple cultures into one single dish. Global restaurants are recognizing the value in cross-cultural dishes, and are experimenting with offering existing popular flavors in non-traditional formats.

Trend - Advent calendars, traditionally filled with small snacks, are now being made to include savory meals in each pouch. While this started as a novelty, it is now gaining mainstream popularity. These calendars are intended for consumers who are less interested in treats than traditional foods.

Insight - The holiday season is often categorized as one of consumption, whether it be gifts for loved ones or food and drink. Consumption combined with festivities leads to an increase in people sharing their favorite foods with one another as an expression of the relationship between the two. These consumers are aware that not every individual shares the same preferences for foods in festivities, leading to the diversification of traditional festive products for those with distinct tastes.

Trend - Inspired by social media, brands are releasing spiced alcoholic drinks to add new flavors to traditional alcoholic beverages. These drinks are infused with real peppers, adding heat and flavor to the drinks. Spicy flavors make these drinks more appealing to younger experiential drinkers.

Insight - Short-form video social media platforms have become prevalent platforms for dramatically expanding the popularity of individuals' ideas in short periods of time. These ideas range from recipes to lifehacks, with many becoming long-standing trends. The younger demographics that frequent these platforms look to and participate in these trends for inspiration, leading to many trends becoming widespread enough to transform into products or full-scale companies.

Trend - Brands in North America are debuting soup kits inspired by African cuisine. Created in partnership with African chefs, these kits deliver authentic flavors and ingredients from across Africa to homes in North America. These kits are easy to prepare and come with all necessary ingredients.

Insight - The diverse population in North American countries leads to consumers being more interested in trying meals from different cultures. Additionally, individuals with rich cultural backgrounds enjoy sharing recipes and dishes from their heritage with others, as this act can serve as a bonding experience for the parties involved. Brands are identifying this trend and launching pre-packaged products with authentic ingredients that streamline these activities for consumers.

Trend - Brands are launching remastered and reworked versions of popular platformer games from the 1990s and 2000s. Platformer games are heavily reliant on seamlessly navigating through levels or platforms while running, jumping, and interacting with the elements involved.

Insight - Consumers often rely on nostalgia to fuel their purchases, especially when the product is associated with a specific era or memory. By leaning into this concept, game developers can market to older audiences while providing younger fans with novelty. Moreover, those who still own older consoles can relish a fresh yet familiar gaming experience through these remastered editions.

Trend - Brands are using chocolate to diversify the skincare market and harness the benefits of the treat in self-care products. Chocolate is often used to enhance the scent, provide flavor, or target problem areas for consumers struggling with their skin.

Insight - Consumers often gravitate toward products that appeal to multiple senses, as these products typically offer a unique experience when used. Consumers who are fond of the smell of chocolate typically gravitate towards products that contain it as an ingredient, as it appeals to their sense of smell and touch. Chocolate also offers benefits like UV protection and hyperpigmentation reduction, contributing to an increased consumer demand among individuals with problematic or sensitive skin.

Trend - Skincare brands are releasing moisturizing creams, lotions, and elixirs made with sea buckthorn oil. This is a natural ingredient derived from the sea buckthorn plant. The ingredient is said to heal and moisturize skin with omega fatty acids, antioxidants, and vitamins ---without requiring preservatives.

Insight - Younger Millennials and Gen Z consumers are more drawn to natural, chemical-free self-care products. Additionally, the percentage of Gen Z consumers who engage in daily skincare regiments is higher than in previous generations. When selecting products, these younger consumers favor those fit for sensitive skin and will pay a premium over heavily processed chemical-based products. Skincare brands are now integrating more natural ingredients, such as buckthorn oils, to appease demand.

Trend - Brands are tapping into nostalgic soda flavors, reimagining these drinks as health-positive products filled with probiotics. These items satisfy nostalgic desires for hearty, classic sodas while simultaneously boosting consumers' gut health.

Insight - Many consumers remember the joy of drinking soda as a youth. However, far fewer customers continue to drink soda in adulthood for health reasons. These consumers desire to recapture these flavorful, youthful experiences, but not to the detriment of their own health. Therefore these customers place pressure on brands to create better-for-you products that appease nostalgia.

Trend - Brands are creating retro-style kitchen appliances equipped with modern technology. These appliances offer nostalgic designs, bringing a natural, simpler feel to a modern kitchen. These products do not compromise on function or convenience, as they feature modern smart technologies.

Insight - Nostalgia is an evergreen trend when considering customer motivations. When a modern product boasts the right balance between function and nostalgia, the target customer is more likely to purchase the product due to the inherent emotional connection. While many industries embrace nostalgia, such as the entertainment industry offering remakes of past content, others look at nostalgia as a gimmick. This places pressure on more industries to incorporate nostalgia into functional products.

Trend - Esports organizations and game developers are introducing new esports initiatives for countries based in the Middle East. As countries like Saudi Arabia continue to invest in the growth of the esports sector, brands are starting to recognize the untapped potential that the region holds for gaming.

Insight - As esports continues to captivate the globe, consumers are looking for ways to engage with this content in their own regions. By hosting Middle Eastern esports competitions, launching esports organizations, and pioneering grassroots initiatives, consumers in these regions can experience gaming content in a more accessible fashion. Additionally, local gamers and content creators can join the major global leagues to compete professionally and attract an international following.