In a potential bright spot for the industry, fewer Americans are claiming to cut their grocery budgets midway through 2026 – but the pressure on grocery volumes continues. How is this true? And … [Read more...] about How should CPG/Retail Navigate the Affordability Crisis heading into 2027? – Webinar
Trade-Off Consumer
The scrutiny consumers are placing on their grocery budgets is lessening to a degree – which is good news – but that doesn’t mean they will be buying more product by volume. They’re not spending less … [Read more...] about Trade-Off Consumer CPG Focus: 1H 2026
Topline restaurant revenue and traffic data are mostly healthy through Q2 2026, and the forewarned pullback in consumer spending has not happened, but GLP-1 adoption and Trade-Off Consumer behavior … [Read more...] about Hidden Trends in U.S. Restaurant Spending, Mid-Year 2026
Big Chalk has been advising brands on how to position themselves to Trade-Off Consumer households for going on three years now. The good news for consumer brand managers and CMOs is that political … [Read more...] about Trade-Off Consumers and Political Affiliation
Big Chalk continues its acclaimed Trade-Off Consumer research series with our Spring 2026 update. How are things looking halfway through 2026? Iran-War-related pressures have cut into household … [Read more...] about Trade-Off Consumer Spring 2026
In June 2025, Big Chalk reported that GLP-1 medications reached a U.S. penetration rate at which their impact on grocery volumes could not be ignored. GLP-1 penetration has grown since last June, … [Read more...] about GLP-1s and CPGs, Spring 2026 Industry Update
Although macroeconomic indicators held strong in 2025, CPG spending intent is decidedly down heading into 2026, and the ways consumers are stretching their grocery dollar are up nearly across the … [Read more...] about Trade-Off Consumer – CPG Industry Focus
One reason the U.S. economy continues to defy expectations for a downturn is the persistent spending by high income households, and one question posed by market watchers is, “Is anything brewing … [Read more...] about Are the Joneses Keeping Up?
Facing increasing corporate adoption of AI and a labor market gradually turning a cold shoulder to recent college grads – plus the same economic challenges facing consumers of any age (high housing … [Read more...] about The Kids Are Alright (Right?)
