Mintel Little Conversation

In this episode of Mintel Little Conversation, host Andrew Davidson is joined by retail experts Diana Smith and Nick Carroll to discuss the 2021 holiday shopping season. From politics, the economy and inflation to supply chain issues and the Delta variant, they analyse the industry, consumer and market changes that have altered or evolved retail shopping over the last year and the impact on brands and retailers over the coming months. Are supply chain issues and product shortages real threats to consumers' holiday shopping plans and retailers' brand images or is it a tactic to encourage early, full-price shopping? What strategies can retailers employ to combat staffing shortages? The experts share their predictions for 2021 and debate whether or not we'll see a continuation of the trend in record-breaking e-commerce growth or the recovery of brick-and-mortar sales; if consumers will continue to gravitate towards independent and local retailers or if same-day delivery, price matching and flexible return policies will win out. Curious to know if gift cards or experiences will be this year's top gift? Listen now to find out!

Host: Andrew Davidson, SVP/Chief Insights Officer, Mintel Comperemedia.

Guests: Diana Smith, Associate Director, Retail and eCommerce, Mintel Reports US.

Nick Carroll, Associate Director, European Retail Research.

In this episode of Little Conversation, host Samantha Dover is joined by experts in consumer trends and purchase behaviour for a discussion about brand loyalty and to answer the questions: how has brand loyalty changed, what behaviour shifts are driving those changes, and what opportunities are there for brands to create loyalty in the future? The COVID-19 pandemic saw consumers prioritising needs over wants and redefining what value means to them, whether that's value through price, quality, convenience, or needs met. The last 18 months also saw an increase in consumer desire for experiences and looking to brands to fill that void. Today, the demand for value and experience are merging, offering brands unique opportunities to reward consumers and drive loyalty - but how? Listen now to find out.

Host: Samantha Dover, Senior Beauty and Personal Care Analyst, Mintel Reports UK.

Guests: Diana Kelter, Senior Trends Analyst, Americas.

Jane Hurh, Associate Director, Mintel Purchase Intelligence.

In this episode of Little Conversation, host Edward Bergen is joined by experts in food and drink, beauty and personal care, and DE&I for an honest discussion about whether or not brands should take a stand concerning ethical, environmental, political and/or social justice issues. The data makes for a compelling case: nearly two-thirds of consumers say they prefer to be associated with brands that align with their values. But how consumers behave tells a different story, one where convenience, price and the product delivering on its promise are most important. So, when - and how - will a brand find success moving beyond the role of providing goods for money and taking a stand for a worthy cause? Are certain industries and audiences more receptive to brand ethics and social responsibility? How thin is the line between brand ethos and marketing campaign? And when do virtue signalling and cancel culture bring it all crashing down? Listen now to find out.

Host: Edward Bergen, Consultant, Mintel.

Guests: Sarah Jindal, Associate Director, Mintel Beauty and Personal Care.

Jonny Forsyth, Associate Director, Mintel Food and Drink.

Adiat Baker, Global Diversity Manager, Mintel.

In this episode of Little Conversation, host Matthew Crabbe discusses the vast and nuanced concept of convenience with experts in consumer behaviour and trend analysis. As the pandemic has significantly shifted how and why consumers make decisions, they consider how consumer expectations around convenience have changed, what consumers now expect from brands in delivering convenience, and what the next convenience benefits will be that consumers will demand from brands. Is convenience more about saving time or making 'difficult things' less difficult? Are innovation, information, technology, and experiences facilitating or hindering convenience, and how do demographics come into play? They also look ahead and debate whether or not consumers will slow it all down and revert to pre-pandemic behaviours, sharing their predictions for the future of convenience that supports routine, reward, value, curation, and subscription. Listen now!

Host: Matthew Crabbe, Director of Mintel Trends, APAC.

Guests: Diana Kelter, Senior Trends Analyst, Americas.

Elysha Young, Manager, Mintel Trends, APAC.

Liisa Kontas, Trends Analyst, EMEA.

In this episode of Mintel Little Conversation, host Andrew Davidson sits down with entrepreneur and investor Ankur Jain to discuss his latest project—an innovative, new loyalty program and co-branded credit card called Bilt Rewards, aimed at renters. Through parent company Kairos HQ, one of Ankur's goals is to use technology to make everyday expenses more affordable, specifically for Millennial and Gen Z consumers. From Bilt's value proposition, features, and marketing strategy to the accelerated launch in summer 2021, Ankur shares why and how they are disrupting the apartment rental market and taking on traditional credit card rewards, as well as his insights on what brands and marketers should consider when targeting younger consumers. Following Ankur's interview, Andrew speaks with Mark Miller, Director of Financial Services Insights at Mintel Comperemedia, to get his take and discuss broader implications for the credit card industry. Listen now!

Host: Andrew Davidson, SVP/Chief Insights Officer, Mintel Comperemedia.

Guests: Ankur Jain, Founder and CEO of Bilt, co-founder and co-CEO of Kairos HQ.

Mark Miller, Director of Insights, Financial Services, Mintel Comperemedia.

In this episode of Mintel Little Conversation, host Andrew Davidson is joined by some of Mintel's best and brightest—three of the authors of Mintel's 2021 Trends spanning the global consumer, food and drink, and beauty and personal care categories. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Mintel analysts sat down to predict future consumer behaviour and its impact on business strategy. Hear their take on the value of trend forecasting and of revisiting trends to see how the pandemic added strength to or challenged certain predictions, and accelerated, paused or even erased already-evolving consumer behaviours. What roles did routine, ritual, wellbeing, value and experience play in 2021 and how have trend trajectories been altered as a result? Curious to know what they're predicting for 2022 and beyond? Listen now to find out!

Host: Andrew Davidson, SVP/Chief Insights Officer, Mintel Comperemedia.

Guests: Sarah Jindal, Associate Director, Mintel Beauty & Personal Care. Jenny Zegler, Associate Director, Mintel Food & Drink.

Simon Moriarty, Director of Mintel Trends, EMEA.

In this episode of Mintel Little Conversation, host Andrew McDougall dives into the world of challenger brands—what drives them, what makes them successful, why we need them, and what more established brands can learn from them. They provide disruption beyond new product innovation and use storytelling to create communities around an untapped consumer need, from ingredients and packaging to brand ethos. Prioritising psychographics over demographics, agility and speed in decision making, and disrupting cultural norms by normalising new behaviours, learn about the strategies that drive success for indie brands.

Host: Andrew McDougall, Associate Director, Global Beauty and Personal Care.

Guests: Lauren Goodsitt, Senior Global Beauty Analyst.

Simon Moriarty, Director, Mintel Trends, EMEA.

Following the recent release of the Mintel Sustainability Barometer 2021, host Samantha Dover sits down with consumer lifestyle experts, trend spotters, and futurists to discuss the current state of global consumers' sustainability behaviours, preferences, and purchases. The question of whether or not the average consumer really cares about sustainability is an important one, but equally important is how much do consumers actually know about sustainability, and issues like climate change, single-use plastic, and solar energy, as that directly impacts how brands should develop new products, messaging strategies, and future planning. The consumer experts and brands strategists take us through the nuances of the data, including the impact of the 'sustainability gap', and offer advice and recommendations for brands and marketers that want to make better sustainability-driven decisions.

Download the free Mintel Sustainability Barometer 2021 at mintel.com/consumer-sustainability-barometer.

Host: Samantha Dover, Senior Beauty and Personal Care Analyst, Mintel Reports UK.

Guests: Richard Cope, Senior Trends Consultant, Mintel Consulting.

Elysha Young, Manager, Mintel Trends, APAC.

Lisa Dubina, Senior Analyst, Culture and Identity, Mintel Reports US.

There are roughly 44 million active patents globally. While well-known to those in the legal field, patents can serve as a massive library of scientific information and product innovation for brands and marketers. But what exactly is a patent and why/how should marketers pay more attention to them? In today's episode, host Edward Bergen welcomes two patent experts to discuss the insights brands can discover from patent filings to inform product innovation, competitive market analysis, and marketing strategy, and the impact patents have on the future of a range of industries including food, drink, beauty, financial services, and insurance.

Host: Edward Bergen, Consultant, Mintel.

Guests: Nigel Swycher, CEO and co-founder of Cipher, and Host of Cipher Vision podcast.

Neha Srivastava, Patent Analyst, Food, Drink, Beauty and Personal Care, Mintel.

To know more about Cipher, please visit https://cipher.ai/

To listen to Cipher Vision podcast, visit https://cipher.ai/podcast-cipher-vision/

As consumers globally slowly emerge from the pandemic, will they be eager to spend on discounted electronics, appliances, and streaming subscriptions or has the luster of Amazon Prime Day’s 48-hour sale (June 21-22) faded due to a damaged company image and increased competition? Mintel retail, consumer, and competitive marketing experts discuss the significance of Prime Day, its impact on the evolution of the ecommerce sector and retail competition overall, as well as what the future holds for Amazon. Listen now to find out what brands and advertisers should take away from Prime Day 2021.

Host: Andrew Davidson, SVP/Chief Insights Officer, Mintel Comperemedia.

Guests: Diana Smith, Associate Director, Retail and eCommerce, Mintel Reports US.

Nick Carroll, Associate Director, Retail Research, Mintel Reports UK.

Lierin Ehmke, Omnichannel Content Manager, Mintel Comperemedia.