Niq Global Intelligence Plc · NYSE:NIQ
Niq Global Intelligence — The 2026 Consumer Outlook Webinar
36 slides from Niq Global Intelligence's conference presentation, Dec 4, 2025
Slide 1: The 2026 Consumer Outlook
The 2026 Consumer Outlook Strategies for a Marketplace in Motion December 4, 2025 © 2025 Nielsen Consumer LLC. All Rights Reserved. Confidential and proprietary
Slide 2: Your presenters today
Rachel Steve Your Bonsignore Zurek VP, Consumer VP, Thought Life Leadership presenters today Kenny Juskowiak Head of North America Marketing Confidential and proprietary © 2025 Nielsen Consumer LLC. All Rights Reserved. 2
Slide 3: Today's Discussion
Where We Stand Today Consumer Reaction: Mass Divergence, Predictable Apathy Today’s Discussion Reinventing the Brand-Consumer Relationship Seamless Commerce: The Omni Revolution Continues Disruptive Trends to Watch Confidential and proprietary © 2025 Nielsen Consumer LLC. All Rights Reserved. 3
Slide 4: Today's Insights Sources
Today’s Insights Sources Data-driven insights to power your year ahead • Ingredient focused • Clean beauty • Paraben free, sulfate free, phthalate free Consumer Life Category Shopping Fundamentals Consumer Outlook Report • Longest-Standing Consumer Trends • A full path to purchase map of your • A st
Slide 5: Where we stand today
Where we stand today Confidential and proprietary 5
Slide 6: Consumers remain wary as inflation, job insecurity dampen outlooks
Consumers remain wary as inflation, job insecurity, slow income growth, and political instability dampen economic outlooks Consumer Confidence 94.2 -3.6 pts (Sept ‘25 vs. YA) 120.0 115.0 Consumer Confidence Index 110.0 105.0 Unemployment Consumer Price Index 100.0 95.0 4.4%* +3.0 pts 90.0 (Sept
Slide 7: Big picture concerns – food, economy, war – are on the rise
Big picture concerns – food, economy, war – are on the rise July % change 2025 vs last year Global 1 Increasing food prices 14% -6.1 15% Economic downturn 2 (was #3 in 2024) 11% 3.2 10% Global conflict/War 3 (was #12 in 2024) 11% -6.9 14% 4 Political unrest 11% 3.2 5% 5 Increased housing costs 5% -2
Slide 8: Stretching spend across total trip is causing stress
Stretching spend across total trip is causing stress – constant risk of brand switching, variable across categories % ‘done something to deal with changing prices’ by category 71% Baby/infant care 80 Have done something to response in changing prices Frozen foods 74 Top activities: go we s Monitor t
Slide 9: SNAP restrictions may reduce US sales in beverage and snack categories
SNAP restrictions may reduce US sales ~1–4% in impacted beverage and snack categories Those who rely on SNAP lean more heavily on value retailers to stretch food dollars Estimated Annual U.S. Sales Risk % $ Value Retailers* from Confirmed* 2026 SNAP Restrictions 45.2 42.6 39.9 31.9 4.1% 28.6 26.2 3
Slide 10: Private Label dollar is growing faster than national brands
Private Label dollar is growing at a faster pace than national brands In August ‘25, Private Label Dollar Share rose slightly to 19.6%, after remaining virtually constant for the past 4 months Dollar share Unit share Private Label Private Label 20% ↑4.6% 22% ↑1.8% vs 2024 vs 2024 National brands Nat
Slide 11: Media buyers plan to spend 1.6 pp less
Media buyers plan to spend 1.6 pp less than what they expected at the start of 2025 7.3% % of revenue spent on advertising 5.7% As growth in media spend is projected to continue slowing through the end of 2025, consumers January September may not get as much brand reinforcement, leaving room for new
Slide 12: Thoughts On… Where we stand today
Thoughts On… Where we stand today Confidential and proprietary 12
Slide 13: Consumer Reaction: Mass Divergence, Predictable Apathy
Consumer Reaction: Mass Divergence, Predictable Apathy Confidential and proprietary 13
Slide 14: Consumers are split on all key indicators of mood
Consumers are split on all key indicators of mood National trends cannot be taken at face value This country is going in the I feel optimistic about the Now is a good time to buy right direction future of the nation (vs. a good time to wait) 50 49 48 46 44 40 40 39 35 36 36 36 37 34 34 34 34 34 32 3
Slide 15: An economy in constant flux = doubt in the American promise
An economy in constant flux = doubt in the American promise of upward mobility What money represents Comfort Only31% believe the US economy 72 is generally fair at providing 67 67 65 opportunities to get ahead 62 Unchanged since 2016; Lowest for women, Gen Z, low earners Control 42 39 39 33 37 57% t
Slide 16: With this volatility, consumers are prioritizing smart investments
With this volatility, consumers are prioritizing smart investments Focusing on wealth and reducing debt may be to mitigate future risk in uncertain times Earn enough in Global 50% my lifetime to pass +6 along wealth to Pts CYA US 45% future generations Pay off my home in my lifetime so +7 58% that i
Slide 17: Most shoppers buy familiar products; struggling shoppers most open to new
While most shoppers continue to buy products that are familiar to them, financially struggling shoppers are the most open to new offerings Product Trial by Financial Situation (Food) Affluent 80% 13% 5%2% Mid-Range 78% 13% 6% 3% ago we s year aid 1 … Struggling 69% 18% 8% 5% In a slow recovery, bran
Slide 18: Thoughts On… Consumer Reaction
Thoughts On… Consumer Reaction Confidential and proprietary 18
Slide 19: Reinventing the Brand-Consumer Relationship
Reinventing the Brand- Consumer Relationship Confidential and proprietary 19
Slide 20: Consumers more intentional with savings; brands must earn trust
As consumers become more intentional with their savings strategies, brands have a greater emphasis on earning trust Brand trust importance US Nearly two-thirds of 62% US Consumers say it is very important to trust brand Global they are buying 53% Very important Somewhat important Not important Sourc
Slide 21: Reliable quality is most important in earning consumer trust
Reliable quality is most important to consumers in brands earning their trust Product quality/consistency Customer service For me, the most important thing about a brand is that Product sourced /made in home country it offers good value for Recos or reviews from people I know the money Transparent b
Slide 22: Environment more challenging for large companies; goodwill toward small brands
Environment more challenging for large companies as goodwill towards small brands continues to dominate % who have a favorable opinion of… 100 Small businesses Consistent across 90 generations and rising among 80 higher income levels 70 60 Rebound in unfavorability for large businesses (+6 pts from
Slide 23: In the past year… innovation growth
In the past year… only 9% of companies grew their innovation while only 50% sales of innovations grew in their second year Source: NIQ Innovation Vitality Multi-year Meta-Analysis 2025; NIQ Innovation Measurement comparison of Total Sales & Innovation Sales growth across 70K+ manufacturers, 130 synd
Slide 24: Declining sales is the #1 trigger to motivate a restage
Renovation is also essential to brand health 60% Declining sales is the #1 trigger to motivate a restage of restages do not recover from their downward trend If your buyers start leaving, it’s too late *Source: BASES Client Survey **Source: BASES Forecasting Experience Confidential and proprietary ©
Slide 25: Thoughts On… Reinventing the Brand-Consumer Relationship
Thoughts On… Reinventing the Brand- Consumer Relationship Confidential and proprietary 25
Slide 26: Seamless Commerce: The Omni Revolution Continues
Seamless Commerce: The Omni Revolution Continues Confidential and proprietary 26
Slide 27: To grow in a challenged market, reach consumers where they are
The consumer path to acquisition is no longer linear… How many ways does the average consumer use to shop? To grow in a challenged market, you need to reach consumers where they are 8 Source: NielsenIQ Omnishopper Panel, Total US Confidential and proprietary © 2025 Nielsen Consumer LLC. All Rights R
Slide 28: Shift from In-Store Only to Omnichannel continues
The shift from In-Store Only purchasing to Omnichannel purchasing continues to creep along Percent of Purchases Made In-Store Only vs Omnichannel % Omnichannel 62% 60% 58% 42% 40% % In-store only 38% Fall 2023 Fall 2024 Fall 2025 Source: NIQ BASES Omnichannel Shopping Fundamentals 2025 and previous
Slide 29: Gen Z digital natives most comfortable in omnichannel settings
Gen Z digital natives most comfortable in omnichannel settings Smartphones help them bridge online and offline shopping % stating omnichannel behavior % Gen Z agreeing Saw product online, bought in-store; “I often use my mobile device in-store to… saw product in-store, bought from store site; Saw pr
Slide 30: Seamless commerce carries into social media commerce
Seamless commerce carries into commercializing social media, although the US trails Global Have you ever purchased a product directly through any of these social media platforms? 64 43% of US Gen Z say that they have bought 47 something directly from TikTok Shop 25 25 22 20 18 16 15 14 10 11 11 7 8
Slide 31: The transformational power of retail media networks
The transformational power and potential of retail media networks Boost overall growth potential for retailers +$1.3T of enterprise value Personalize shopping experiences and seamless from retail media in for consumers product discovery US by 2026 Leverage new data for precision for manufacturers
Slide 32: Thoughts on… Seamless Commerce
Thoughts on… Seamless Commerce Confidential and proprietary 32
Slide 33: Disruptive Trends to Watch
Disruptive Trends to Watch Confidential and proprietary 33
Slide 34: Disruptive trends: anti-obesity meds, commodities, private label, AI
The anti-obesity medication effect goes global Commodity volatility is the new constant Private label is no longer a trade-down AI rewrites discovery and search Confidential and proprietary © 2025 Nielsen Consumer LLC. All Rights Reserved. 34
Slide 35: Questions? Your Growth Playbook
Your Growth Playbook Today’s main takeaways as we look to 2026 Rachel Bonsignore VP, Consumer Life Rachel.Bonsignore@NielsenIQ.com Consumers are prioritizing smart investments. Financial struggling shoppers are most open to new offerings. Steve Zurek Brand loyalty is in flux. Reliable quality and in
Slide 36: Thank you for joining us
Thank you for joining us for… The 2026 Consumer Outlook Register for our upcoming Omnichannel webinar! Omnichannel Acceleration: Data- Driven Strategies for Brands & Retailers in 2026 December 9th @ 2:00 PM ET © 2025 Nielsen Consumer LLC. All Rights Reserved. Confidential and proprietary
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