Why it matters:
- Shifting markers of adulthood, economic concerns, and a thrift mindset are altering what consumers celebrate and prioritize.
- Technology that alleviates, rather than increases, isolation opens opportunities for brands to use AI constructively.
- Products that promote self-care, comfort, and playfulness that transcend age will appeal to consumers facing challenges and burnout.
Evolving generational behaviors, new life milestones, accessible and even passive self-care, real and perceived economic concerns, and tech advances are among the trends taking shape in 2025, according to trendspotters. Here, five leading forecasters tell CO— the trends to watch in the coming year and the business opportunities they present.
The forever young adult: Opportunity in life's 'minorstones' and 'kidulting'
The forever young adult will emerge into the mainstream in 2025, Cassandra Napoli, WGSN Head of Marketing and Events Insight, told CO—.
WGSN, a global trend forecasting company, attributes the trend to pushback on societal expectations to achieve certain life milestones by a particular age, such as getting married, buying a home, having children, or having the perfect career by 30. "From Asia to the U.S., consumers increasingly recognize there is no set timeline to hit life milestones," Napoli said.
Minorstones, smaller, more approachable wins versus milestones like marriage, are becoming life moments. "There are so many young people who are not hitting those life markers by a certain age, and they are seeking out alternative ways to celebrate others' wins, such as running a marathon or buying their first designer handbag as an adult," Napoli explained.
"Minorstones are things most people can accomplish, and businesses will need to pay attention, as they'll become money-making opportunities," she added. "For example, greeting cards that say things like, 'Congrats for running your half marathon.'"
Napoli also pointed to behavioral shifts like youth maturing faster and older people acting younger and living longer, which have made antiquated rigid ideas about when we achieve certain milestones.
"Kids are influenced by what they see online, so they're growing up quicker and look older," she noted. "Just look to the example that Gen Alphas (born between 2010 and 2024) are active consumers at Sephora even boasting multistep skincare routines."
At the same time, Napoli noted that we also see adults acting and buying like kids, reverting to their childhoods by embracing cultural nostalgia. "Dungeons and Dragon groups are making a comeback, and people are buying toys and merch from their childhood," she said.
"This idea of kidulting will move beyond the fringes and into the mainstream with toy sales at places like Legos and American Girl Doll finding success with millennials and Gen X," Napoli added.
Theatrics of thrift: A mindset of downsizing and trade-offs
Economic concerns loom large in consumers' minds and while some people have been dramatically impacted, others act as though things have changed when they don’t necessarily need to.
"We call it the 'theatrics of thrift,'" said Laurie Demeritt, CEO of the Hartman Group, a market researcher of consumers and culture in the food and beverage sector. "It could be a worry in the back of their minds of not being seen living large, or the concept of frugality being virtuous."
This consumer mindset in some cases leads to downsizing or trade-offs.
"They are still buying beef but instead of New York strip, they are trying skirt steak, for example. And the frugality is not only confined to groceries," Demeritt said. "It's likely impacting other categories and should have companies thinking about things like how to size product or package it."
[Read: Ready. Set. Scale. 2025 Customer Trends Every Small Business Should Know]
AI companionship: 'Artificial affection' and the loneliness epidemic
A 2025 Global Consumer Trends report from market intelligence analyst Mintel highlighted technology's influence on community spaces. The report notes that digital spaces will transform opportunities for community and self-expression, but physical spaces continue to drive a sense of belonging. An emergence of hybrid communities that blend online engagement with in-person interactions will result.
For one, "In 2025, we'll start to see AI companionship unfold into the mainstream as a result of rising social isolation and loneliness levels across the globe," said WGSN's Napoli. Consumers will start to rely on this technology in their everyday lives to help them solve problems or work through emotional issues, with artificial intelligence (AI) standing in for human connections.
We must be mindful of the risk factors, Napoli cautioned.
"Businesses must focus on tech that encourages connections in the physical world and beware of artificial affection as consumers create emotional ties with AI," she said, pointing to the example of Japan's Tokyo Enmusubi dating app launch. The app uses AI to match people to boost marriage and fertility rates, which are declining in the nation.
"Ultimately, brands will have to adopt a balanced approach to AI, ensuring it supports human self-expression to mitigate the risk of increased social isolation," the Mintel report stated.
Soft outdoor adventure: Gear and services needs will grow
Services and products related to soft adventure — outdoor activities that don't require a significant investment in equipment or much skill to start — will rise in demand, Lisa White, WGSN's Director of Strategic Forecasting, told CO—.
Factors like an aging population, the cost-of-living crisis, a desire for relatively inexpensive entertainment, and a wide range of multiliving situations and communities are influencing activities like hiking, camping, cycling, birdwatching, and snowshoeing.
As new participants reap the health and wellness benefits of the outdoors via accessible activities, demand for products and services designed for need, rather than a participant's age, is rising, said White.
"Consumers want and need to move, whatever their personal fitness levels, and sometimes they need a bit of gear to help them get outside," she explained. "This might be something [such as] a snowshoe that is lightweight like a foam sneaker sole, with easy-to-use bindings to make walking in the snow safe and fun, or compact binoculars for budding birders that are easy to pop into a purse."
[Read: 5 Key Takeaways From Holiday Spending That Will Shape Retail in 2025]
Therapeutic laziness: The bed as a wellness zone
A new evolution of self-care is coming in 2025: therapeutic laziness, an antidote to rising levels of burnout and anxiety that offers a guilt-free retreat from stress.
"It's all about passive wellness, building on an 'anti-performative wellness' movement," WGSN's White said. "It elevates 'bed rotting,' or spending extended time in bed and being intentionally unproductive, into a refined self-care ritual loaded with tactile hedonism."
Sleep tourism will also have a new allure, with hotels and retreats offering rest programs and spaces with sleep-enhancing amenities, from smart beds to prescription-scented lullabies. "Even mattress brands like Emma are opening sleep hotels," White added.
Beds will become wellness zones and self-care sanctuaries, said White, opening opportunities for "treat-while-you-laze" products that enhance skin and hair health while you unwind, sensorial bedding embedded with nourishing ingredients (like CBD infused at the fiber level), and scents that bridge the gap between skincare and sleep.
"It follows our macro trend of 'feel appeal,' which is a long-term trend that links emotional feelings to how things feel physically," White said.
"Consumers want to feel textures and touch before they buy," she continued. "They want to layer scents, like laundry detergent, room perfume, and pillow sprays to scentscape their bedrooms."
Elevating the bed to a self-care sanctuary is attainable for all lifestyles and price points. White asserted, "Not everyone has a bathtub to unwind in, but everyone does have a bed."
Design: Reflecting a craving for comfort with color
Color trends reveal a lot about consumer desires. It's a study the Pantone Color Institute has taken on for decades in its trend forecasting. A global team examines what's happening in culture from travel to music to art to technology and beyond to flesh out "the why behind a color trend," explained Laurie Pressman, Vice President. For 2025, Pantone named mocha mousse, a soft brown, as Color of the Year to reflect a cultural zeitgeist for comfort.
The whipped brown shade is airy, not heavy ("There is enough weight going on around us," noted Pressman) but is nature-based, neutral, and evokes richness and luxury. It also conjures a sweet treat, tapping into food-fixation colors that are trending, but more deeply the sense of a treat that replenishes the soul at a time when consumers crave wellness and a sense of harmony.
Tracking color trends can spark ideas for products based on what they reveal about consumer wants and needs. And for businesses wondering how to incorporate trending colors, packaging, and web design are areas where they can make an impact. "The human eye is fickle and gravitates to what is new, what it hasn't seen in a while," Pressman said.
"It's important for businesses to leverage the power of color to tell a story," she added. "It is one more way to engage the audience they are trying to reach."
CO— aims to bring you inspiration from leading respected experts. However, before making any business decision, you should consult a professional who can advise you based on your individual situation.
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