Challenge the challengers

Challenging the challengers examines the rise of the challenger brand and the increased threat this presents to established brands. It explores what is driving this movement and the behaviours that are contributing to challenger success in winning over the consumer. It raises the question, ‘do established brands need to start behaving differently?’, before answering with an unmitigated ‘yes they do’.

To start getting under the skin of this business-critical issue, we commissioned quantitative research amongst over 1000 people who had recently switched from established brands to challenger brands across 8 categories: food, soft drinks, alcohol, household products, healthcare, toiletries, beauty and grooming products.

We gathered invaluable insights and used them to create a clearly defined picture of the threat posed by the challenger, along with strategic pointers for survival and success as an established brand.

For the 10 key takeaways for brands to act upon, refer to the full report. In the meantime, here is the reality:

5 harsh truths

1. Challengers are impacting all categories
After food (57%), some two fifths (39%) of consumers say they have switched to a challenger brand in toiletries, followed by alcohol (35%), beauty (34%), household products (32%), healthcare (31%), soft drinks (29%), and grooming products (28%).

2. The switch to challengers is likely to be permanent
44% say they intend to stick with the brand they’ve switched to.

3. Challengers are delivering to expectations
50% of respondents say challenger brands are seen to provide good value for money.

4. Higher consideration favours challenger brands
This is especially true for food purchases, with over a half (60%) of shoppers saying that the more invested they are in a purchase, the more likely they are to switch.

5. People recognise and respond positively to the challenger mindset
People recognise and respond positively to the purpose and personality presented by challengers – particularly younger consumers, aged 16-34.