The results of a unique survey conducted by global consulting firm AlixPartners revealed that consumer preferences on health and wellness product attributes vary in highly specific ways across age groups, geographic regions, product categories, and at every stage of the value chain. Titled, “Cracking the code on consumers’ health-and-wellness preferences”, the survey counters the ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach suggesting it alienates more consumers than it attracts.
Given how preferences vary across the value chain, the report emphasizes that consumer preferences cannot be predicted, and efforts need to be taken for them to be discovered. The report cites how Chinese and French consumers show a greater willingness to pay more for products with clean and healthy attributes, while 73% of US consumers said that price is a big barrier to purchasing these products. Consumers in France and Germany prefer locally-sourced products, while Chinese consumers place greater value on imported products.
“To capture—and defend—market share, it’s critical that consumer products players understand what consumers really want, which attributes they are willing to pay for, and how their preferences differ by country,” said AlixPartners managing director and global co-lead of consumer products, David Garfield. “It’s also essential for companies to understand whether consumers care more about ingredients, the manufacturing process, packaging, or other stages in the value chain in order to make the right strategic investments.”
The survey gathered responses from consumers in the US, Germany, France, China, and the UK, evaluating how they responded to different product attributes at the category and segment levels.
