Consumers are exhausted. Not according to us, but the latest Future Consumer 2026 report from WGSN.

The findings follow a period of “great resignation” in 2022, followed by “quiet quitting” in 2023.

• According to a 2022 WGSN survey, “65% of respondents said they felt burned out due to more demanding personal and professional lives, exacerbated by a polycrisis of rising living costs, financial uncertainty, geopolitical tensions, and eco-anxiety.”

And now, it seems the “great exhaustion” is upon us, which WGSN describes as a “collective feeling of fatigue, stress, and burnout.”

The latest report additionally pointed out that Gen Z and younger millennials are likely to be “disproportionately” impacted by the great exhaustion with 48% of respondents under 30 reporting feeling drained at work, according to a summary of the report. This in turn is leading consumers to want a simpler life and seek happiness in everyday “small wins” or “glimmers of joy,” according to the report.

Luckily, the trend forecasting and analytics firm has also done a deep dive into the consumer profiles and sentiments that will shape the next two years—so retailers, take note.

Keep reading here.—JS

There’s no doubt that somebody slammed the reset button on retail. With tech innovations like AI/ML changing the game on personalized customer journey, successful retailers are learning how to adapt to an ever-evolving industry.

Great news: T-Mobile for Business can help. With the right solutions on their most awarded network, you can level up your shopper experience, streamline operations, and boost sales. Ready to soar to the top?

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DoorDash is expanding its commitment to alcohol deliveries with a new lineup of retail partners, including select Giant, Food Lion, and Hannaford locations, as well as liquor store chains such as Spirits Unlimited and Stew Leonard’s Wines and Spirits.

The expansion is part of an ongoing initiative to become a leader in alcohol delivery, which can be controversial, depending on where you live. Fuad Hannon, VP of new verticals, said in a statement that the total number of liquor stores on the platform jumped 60% in 2023, and that today, “DoorDash is the US category share leader for third-party liquor store delivery sales.”

Keep reading here.—AV

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) was flat in May following a 0.3% increase in April, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported this week, marking the first time in almost two years the CPI was flat month over month.

Prices increased 3.3% year over year, down from the 3.4% annual bump in April. Both the monthly and annual rates were 0.1 percentage points below economists’ predictions.

Food inflation was up 0.1% in May after being flat in April, with food away from home up 0.4% and food at home unchanged. Among the major grocery store indexes, inflation for dairy was down 0.5%, thanks to a 1.3% drop in milk, while nonalcoholic beverages dipped 0.3% monthly. Fruit and vegetable prices were flat, while meats, poultry, fish, and eggs, along with cereals and bakery products, both rose 0.2% monthly.

Keep reading here.—EC

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