Pulse January / February 2016 | Page 56

ASK THE EXPERT NADEJDA POPOVA NADEJDA POPOVA, Euromonitor International’s senior analyst – travel, brings to light findings from the Global Consumer Trends survey to highlight global attitudes toward health and fitness as well as pinpoint emerging consumer trends changing today’s retail landscape. PULSE: Euromonitor International’s Global Consumer Trends survey identified young men and women’s global attitudes toward health and fitness. Can you provide some key insights from this research? Nadejda Popova: Exercise and physical activity, in general, is an important part of life for many global consumers, helping them stay both happy and healthy. In line with this sentiment, Euromonitor International’s Global Consumer Trends survey revealed that over 60 percent of global respondents get regular exercise. Among those who exercise, most participate in some sort of sport or gym workout and a majority at least occasionally walk for exercise. Complementing their higher self-health assessment, consumers in emerging markets typically report getting more exercise than those in developed countries. P: In general, how frequent do respondents exercise or perform physical activities? P: A majority of global online consumers self-reported that they exercise at least weekly. Sixty percent say they participate in a physical activity at least once a week. Just six percent say they never exercise. Emerging market consumers are slightly more likely to exercise at least weekly while 62 percent say they exercise at least once a week compared to 56 percent of those in developed markets. In the U.S., 69 percent of online consumers say they workout at least once a week. Frequent exercisers, those exercising almost every day, make up just under one third of global online consumers. Men are slightly more likely to report exercising almost every day; 31 percent do so compared to 26 percent of women. Indian consumers are the most likely to incorporate exercise into a daily routine. Over four in 10 make time almost every day for physical activity. On the other hand, Japanese, German and French consumers are the least likely to be frequent exercisers. 54 PULSE ■ January/February 2016 P: Based on data from the survey, how does the female segment view their own personal health? P: On the whole, female respondents under the age of 30 perceive themselves to be in good health. On a scale of one to 11, 71 percent rated their health from eight to 11 while just six percent rated their health from one to four. French and Brazilian women were most likely to consider themselves to be very healthy, with 41 percent of French and 40 percent of Brazilian women under 30 years old giving their health a 10 or 11 on the scale. Despite having the lowest female obesity rate, the longest life expectancies and among the healthiest diets in the world, Japan scored lowest in terms of the number of under 30-year-old females perceiving themselves to be very healthy (15 percent). Young women in the U.K. and Germany were also among the least likely to say they were very healthy (18 percent and 19 percent, respectively). This may be related to the high l