#consumer-behavior

#consumer-behavior

Two Ways of Living Through Time Clock timers live by external time. They wake up to an alarm, eat breakfast at a designated hour, and arrive at work precisely when the clock dictates. Their day unfolds in neat, measurable units, each activity clearly marked by a start and an end. A clock timer's sense of order comes from synchronizing with the external rhythms of time.

Google's Gemini and OpenAI's ChatGPT were the two fastest-growing brands this year among consumers earning more than $100,000 a year, according to Morning Consult. The report measured interest in these tools by purchasing intent, which jumped sharply from the first quarter to the third quarter. Don't Miss: Brand awareness among this income group also skyrocketed. Gemini, for example, rose from 62% awareness early in the year to 78% by the third quarter. ChatGPT remains the most well-known AI tool, with 89% familiarity among high-income consumers.

Meadow Lane, a gourmet grocer in New York City's Tribeca neighborhood, opened Friday at 11 a.m., attracting quite the line of hopeful and hungry shoppers. The brainchild of former venture capitalist Sammy Nussdorf, the store had a cult following before it had a physical retail space. He's been posting about the storesince June 2024, and some of his taste-tasting videos of the menu have gone viral.

A couple of police officers leapt out and asked us to jump up and down. You what? They asked us again, but in a tone suggesting it was less of a question than a command. Up and down we jumped until told to stop doing so. The cops thanked us for our trouble and, jumping back into their vehicle, explained they were on the hunt for some lads who'd just robbed an amusement arcade.

But Lyst's Q3 2025 Index offers some perspective on the "hottest brands and products" over the last three months. The index, which analyzes shopper behavior from "more than 160 million annual users across thousands of brands and stores," featured French luxury retailer Yves Saint Laurent emerging at the top of the list for the first time. In second, third, and fourth place were Miu Miu, COS, and The Row, respectively.

If you want a sociological anecdote of how weird wins, look no further than online dating. Dating apps have shown us that people don't actually want the most "normal" partner. They want quirks that stand out. Hinge data shows that profiles mentioning a niche interest-like a specific video game or obscure hobby-are more likely to get matches than generic "I like to travel" statements.

When economist Thorstein Veblen coined the term "conspicuous consumption" in 1899, he was describing a new kind of social display: one where people bought goods not out of need but as "trophies of success." To Veblen, the emerging "leisure class" proved its superiority not by labor or contribution but by its seeming exemption from work and its power to waste.

Seeing an attractive face activates the brain's reward and social circuits releasing the feelgood hormone dopamine, writes Laura Elin Pigott, a senior lecturer in neurosciences and neurorehabilitation at London South Bank University. This hormone is also released when we happen to live up to a specific beauty standard, making this feel biologically gratifying. All is not lost though our perceptions can be retrained, apparently. The science makes it clear: our brains respond to what they're fed.

For decades, the alcohol category has been a reliable driver of trips and revenue for grocery retailers. But today, that consistency can no longer be taken for granted. According to NielsenIQ, alcohol sales in U.S. retail fell by nearly 3% in 2024 - one of the sharpest year-over-year declines in recent memory. Tariffs on imports and the popularity of non-alcohol alternatives and CBD products are creating headwinds.

It's not news that many of the alcohol industry's brand managers seek to bring their products to cities where they themselves don't actually live. These people often live in cities like New York and Los Angeles and commute to smaller cities across the country in an attempt to integrate their brands. But while doing so, they often market through the lens of what's working in their home cities, not necessarily through the lens of what people in their target markets are actually doing.

In the 70s and the 80s, you had this early explosion of behavioral economics led by people like Daniel Kahneman, Richard Thaler. And then 20 years ago was the Freakonomics phenomenon. So you had Steven Levitt, an economist, and Stephen Dubner, a journalist, who wrote a book that popularized all of this thinking that attempted to show the hidden side of everything, what truly motivates us as economic actors. And the field took off behind this basic tagline that conventional wisdom is wrong.

A sandwich's carbon score highlights how even small daily choices connect to our wider environmental footprint. It's not unusual for people to share photos of their lunch. Now, they're sharing ready-made sandwiches labelled with carbon scores. These metrics show consumers how much of their "daily dietary carbon allowance" a humble sandwich consumes. As you can imagine, across social media, people expressed surprise not only at the scoring system but particularly at the idea of a "carbon allowance." But what is it really all about - saving the planet or selling virtue as a commodity?

Users increasingly want to spend less time on generalized sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and instead join online communities tailored to their interests, she believes. Natalie Dillon, a consumer investor at venture firm Maveron, says she's starting to see an increasing number of founders build interest-first networks. "At its core, consumer behavior is pushing a shift from performance to participation," Dillon told TechCrunch. "For the next generation, community isn't a feature layered on top of a product. It is the product."

During these uncertain times-shaped by shifts in trade policy and geopolitics-keeping the consumer top of mind is vital. "Our focus is just maniacally on the customer," said Corie Barry, CEO of Best Buy, during a fireside chat with Fortune 's Emma Hinchliffe on Tuesday. Barry noted that it has never been more important for her to understand and adapt to the distinct behaviors of different consumers.

Nostalgia, that longing for what was and the happy memories we associate with it, may seem particularly keen when our daily lives - both personally and in the wider world - are less than ideal. Indeed, according to a 2025 study by CivicScience, more than 60% of Americans feel nostalgic for the past. Furthermore, the same study also found that nearly half of adults in the U.S. would spend money on something that conjures up feelings of nostalgia.

While consulting for a national DIY automotive store chain, we discovered a common pattern. Auto enthusiasts (gearheads) who could evaluate spare part technologies and verify quality on their own did not care which store they patronized, as long as the products they needed were always available. On the other hand, relative amateurs and novices who lacked sufficient technical knowledge developed loyalty to retail stores where they felt they received trustworthy guidance to help select the right products for their needs.

Had I ditched the pint of Guinness and invested in Apple in the early 2000s, each pint worth of stock would now be valued at $3,500. Over those college years, I would have accumulated enough stock to buy a brownstone on New York's pricey Upper West Side. All cash. Looking back, I probably still would have enjoyed that cold brew with my friends. A pint of Guinness felt just right in the moment.

Controversy is baked in - which is why it should come as no surprise that Contrarian Thinking CEO Codie Sanchez made waves for a hot take she shared in a podcast interview. In a clip of the interview, posted by TikTok account @goated.quotes, Sanchez says that she can tell how successful someone is by how they order coffee. "Show me how long it takes you to order at a counter," says the CEO, "and I will show you your bank account."

Alan Greenspan knows a thing or two about underpants. American history's second-longest-tenured Fed chairman also knows a thing or many about recessions, obviously, and the two are related: Sales of men's underwear, Greenspan once reportedly suggested, are inversely proportional to economic anxiety. As the theory goes, men see underwear as a luxury, not a necessity. When money gets tight, boxers get holey.

At many gas stations across the Midwest and South, Gen Zers have discovered "heavy" options on soda-fountain machines, where the syrup-to-water ratio is boosted for extra sweetness and flavor. The drinks are intentionally made stronger to withstand dilution from melting ice, allowing the soda to taste like it typically does as the ice melts. The hack appeals to those who purchase a single, large drink and keep adding ice and water throughout the day, effectively extending the life-and value-of each purchase.

About three-quarters of U.S. adults said they watched a new movie on streaming instead of in the theater at least once in the past year, according to the survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, including about 3 in 10 who watched new movies on streaming at least once a month.

For Walmart and its peers, referral clicks account for less than 5% of total site visits - outweighed by direct traffic, paid channels and search engines. But the speed at which ChatGPT has climbed into the top tier of referral sources shows howhow AI is starting to influence how consumers shop online. Shoppers are increasingly clicking through links inside AI chat responses, pushing major retailers into the shopping journey historically dominated by Google search.

Consumer interest confirmed, Ivester wanted not just a plastic replica of the glass bottle, but a much larger version. Over the years, Coke had steadily increased the sizes of its fountain drinks. A large soda now stood at 20 ounces, a full 4 ounces bigger than the previous iteration. "We were really training consumers at that time to drink more and more," says McWhorter.