In the next six months, global consumers are planning to reduce their spending in luxury or premium products across a variety of retail categories, including fashion, which is forecast to see a 41 per cent decrease in spending, according to the PwC Global Consumer Insights Survey 2023. Consumers’ behaviours, technological preferences and expectations continue to evolve. How can companies meet them where they want to be?
As 2023 unfolds, powerful internal and external forces are weighing on consumers and companies, producing frictions that can gum up the gears of commerce and stand in the way of more satisfying customer experiences. Concerned about inflation and the cloudy macroeconomic climate, consumers are realigning their shopping habits and adopting cost-cutting behaviours. Fully half of all consumers are either very or extremely concerned about their own personal financial situation. And 96% of surveyed consumers intend to adopt some type of cost-saving behaviour over the next six months. Still, eager to resume their pre-covid habits, they’re returning to stores and travelling again. Empowered by technology, they’re seeking and demanding seamless in-store and online experiences that better suit their lifestyles—and pocketbooks.
To a large degree, covid continues to influence the experiences of consumers and the industries that cater to them. E-commerce grew massively during the pandemic in part because in many areas it was the only type of commerce available. Some of that boom is subsiding. But what seem like short-term declines may simply be mean regression in the context of long-term growth; 43% of consumers said they plan to increase online shopping in the next six months. These are among the central findings of the latest Global Consumer Insights Pulse Survey, conducted in December 2022 among 9,180 consumers across 25 territories.
The demand and supply shocks brought about by covid continue to ripple through the economy and factor into consumers’ decision-making, habits and attitudes. Yet, even as they take defensive actions, consumers remain resilient, demanding and eager to experiment. Consumers are seeking less friction—but that doesn’t necessarily mean opting only for e-commerce, or for physical experiences that are entirely mediated by technology. They’re continuing to experiment with the next generation of digital platforms, including the metaverse. And as more of everyday work and leisure life continues to go digital, mobile and virtual, concerns about data security and privacy remain a significant source of friction.
The survey makes it clear that companies must go beyond responding to consumers’ evolving attitudes, actions and aspirations. They must identify, isolate and mitigate the many frictions that stand between them and their customers, and between their customers and optimal experiences. Beyond meeting consumers where they are—physically and psychologically—companies must invest to ensure that they’ll be able to meet them where they will be in the future.
