KPMG 2024 Consumer and Retail CEO Outlook

120 Consumer & Retail CEOs

11 Countries

$500md USD+ in revenue

The global landscape is undeniably complex right now. Geopolitical shifts, economic uncertainty, and pressure on consumer spending are just a few of the forces shaping the future of business. Yet, leaders of the consumer and retail (C&R) industry are facing the future with resilience and resolve.

As part of the latest KPMG CEO Outlook, C&R CEOs from around the world were surveyed, capturing their insights amidst this turbulent landscape. What's clear is that these leaders have become masters at navigating change and uncertainty. While they acknowledge the challenges that lie ahead, they remain optimistic about the future growth of the consumer and retail industry.

KPMG 2024 Consumer and Retail CEO Outlook

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Key findings from our research

82%

of C&R CEOs are confident about their company’s growth prospects but only 59% are optimistic about economic growth which was the lowest of all industries surveyed
In 2024

The top three challenges for C&R CEOs include economic uncertainty (58%), geopolitical complexities (53%), and the adoption of generative AI (48%)
81%

of C&R CEOs recognize sales and marketing as a key investment area for Gen AI
63%

are confident that they will meet net zero goals by 2030.
48%

of our respondents say they are ‘well prepared’ for a cyber attack

CEOs in the Consumer and Retail sector are navigating a complex and challenging landscape, but their confidence in the industry's future is reassuring. They need to navigate multiple areas including driving growth in a time when spending capacity is muted and competition is more, managing profitability in a generally inflationary environment and complying with increasing regulation. A common theme of all the above, is the granularity at which implementation needs to be managed. Data and analytics are a key for this, and GenAI as a technology to manage this complexity is key. Organisations that embrace this into their ways-of-working are likely to get ahead.

Nikhil Sethi

Partner and Head, Consumer Goods

KPMG in India

Today Consumer and Retail companies are transforming at a rapid pace as a result of a push towards digitalization and enhancing customer experience. As Gen AI increasingly takes centre stage for investment in helping retailers know their customers better and have a stronger control on their inventories, retailers need to prioritize their investments towards making strategic decisions. CEOs should ensure that these investments not only align with immediate business goals but also deliver sustainable value and improve the overall customer journey. Despite slower growth, e-commerce has shown resilience especially in tier 2 and 3 cities and with global brands continuing to enter India the outlook is quite optimistic.

Dr. Puneet Mansukhani

Partner - Digital Advisory and Sector Head- Retail

KPMG in India

Methodology

The 10th edition of the KPMG CEO Outlook, conducted with 1,325 CEOs between 25 July and 29 August 2024, provides unique insight into the mindset, strategies and planning tactics of CEOs. All respondents have annual revenues over US$500M and one-third of the companies surveyed have more than US$10B in annual revenue. The survey included leaders from 11 markets (Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Spain, UK and US) and 11 key industry sectors (asset management, automotive, banking, consumer and retail, energy, infrastructure, insurance, life sciences, manufacturing, technology, and telecommunications). NOTE: Some figures may not add up to 100 percent due to rounding. This subsection of the global report drills down into the sentiments and experiences of 120 consumer and retail CEOs and identifies the issues that concern them most. We hope it will help you to benchmark your own performance and understand how the sector is likely to navigate the next three years.