“Premiumization” Emerges As Southeast Asia’s Middle-Class Surges

Evidence of Southeast Asia’s rising standard of living is found in the consumer trend toward “premiumization,” according Nielsen. By 2030, Southeast Asia will be home to three billion middle-class consumers. Seventeen percent already say they can spend freely, and do, especially on premium-price grocery and personal care products. In the past year, there has been a 21 percent increase in the proportion of premium-priced goods sold compared to mainstream and value brands. Mainstream products still dominate the market, but “a definitive shift” is taking place among middle-class consumers toward premium brands. Marketers can take advantage of this by introducing “innovative products that are competitively priced.”