The McKinsey Quarterly

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featured Retail & Consumer Goods article, new Japanese consumer

MARCH 2010

The new Japanese consumer

The attitudes and behavior of Japanese consumers are shifting dramatically, presenting opportunities and challenges for companies in the world’s second-largest retail market.

Includes:

OCTOBER 2009

McKinsey conversations with global leaders: Paul Polman of Unilever

Unilever’s chief executive reflects on lessons learned at three major consumer goods companies, including how to manage people in a global context, the obligations corporations have to society, and why you should never waste a good crisis.

Includes:
AUGUST 2009

Unlocking the potential of frontline managers

Instead of administrative work and meetings, they should focus on coaching their employees and on constantly improving quality.
APRIL 2009

Managing innovation: Pages from Alessi’s handbook

A three-part multimedia feature explores how design firm Alessi manages innovation—from working with collaborators, to how design constraints help shape products, to assessing new innovations’ potential.

Includes:
DECEMBER 2008

Industry trends in the downturn: A snapshot

In times of great uncertainty, an understanding of long-term industry trends can help executives plot robust strategies. This roundup highlights structural issues likely to influence the future performance of four industries: steel, technology, chemicals, and consumer goods.
SEPTEMBER 2008

What’s new with the Chinese consumer

It’s hard for brand managers to keep pace with the shifting attitudes of Chinese consumers. But some trends can be discerned amid the noise.
AUGUST 2007

Tracking the growth of India’s middle class

Over the next two decades, the country’s middle class will grow from about 5 percent of the population to more than 40 percent and create the world’s fifth-largest consumer market.

Includes:
SEPTEMBER 2008

How retailers can make the best of a slowdown

Moving quickly to improve performance can help retailers to recover faster.
MARCH 2007

Selling to 'mom-and-pop' stores in emerging markets

Traditional shops and the companies that serve them are finding life harder and harder. For the suppliers, segmented execution is the answer.
MARCH 2007

Financing Latin America's low-income consumers

Lower-income groups in Latin America represent a huge opportunity, but banks must change dramatically to serve them.

FEBRUARY 2010

A marketer’s guide to behavioral economics

Marketers have been applying behavioral economics—often unknowingly—for years. A more systematic approach can unlock significant value.
DECEMBER 2009

How the recession has changed US consumer behavior

Companies waiting for a return to normality following the recession may be disappointed. Their customers have tried cheaper products—and actually like them.
DECEMBER 2009

Water as a scarce resource: An interview with Nestlé’s chairman

The chairman of Nestlé explains why water is “by far the most valuable resource on this planet” and what we must do to conserve it.

OCTOBER 2009

China’s retail revolution: An interview with Wal-Mart’s Ed Chan

Wal-Mart China’s CEO outlines the strategy of the world’s largest retailer in the world’s most populous nation.

Includes:
SEPTEMBER 2009

Think regionally, act locally: Four steps to reaching the Asian consumer

The most successful global consumer enterprises are radically reshaping their organizations and business models to suit the region’s rapidly evolving high-growth markets.
AUGUST 2009

Japan’s luxury shoppers move on

The Japanese consumer’s seemingly insatiable appetite for luxury goods has declined, so companies in this sector must rethink the way they compete.
JULY 2009

Understanding China’s wealthy

China will soon be home to the world’s fourth-largest population of wealthy households. Companies that hope to reach them must understand how they differ from their counterparts elsewhere, from other Chinese consumers, and from one another.

OCTOBER 2009

Consumer electronics gets back to basics
MAY 2009

Understanding online shoppers in Europe
APRIL 2007

Price promotions in Latin American retailing

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