our thinking

Consumers today are no longer defined by neat, static boxes. Identity is more expansive, more blended, and more situational than ever before. Gender feels less like a fixed line and more like an open spectrum. Lifestyles stretch across work, play, and wellness in ways that overlap rather than separate. As identities become fluid, categories begin to follow.

Beauty is one of the clearest examples. What was once coded as female or male has become a shared space. Skincare routines, nail polish, and even fragrance are now marketed across the spectrum. In food and beverage, categories that were once rigid are bending. Snacks are positioned as protein sources, immunity boosters, or mood lifters. Alcohol no longer means only “with alcohol.” Premium spirits now share the shelf with alcohol-free cocktails that promise the same sophistication without the buzz.

This fluidity has implications far beyond product design. It challenges the foundation of how we segment consumers. Traditional segmentation assumed that people stayed in a lane. You were a certain type of shopper, a member of a demographic group, a loyalist to a defined category. Today the same consumer may move between indulgence and restraint, between wellness and escapism, between self-expression and simplicity. These movements are not contradictions. They are part of a more flexible relationship with identity and choice.

At Egg, we view this not as a problem but as a richer lens. Segmentation must evolve from drawing boundaries to mapping movements. It is no longer enough to ask “who fits where.” The sharper question is “how do people move” across needs, moods, and communities, and what patterns emerge when you zoom out.

We see opportunity in designing strategies that flex with people rather than trying to pin them down. The brands that thrive will be those that recognize fluidity as a source of energy rather than noise. Beauty brands that celebrate inclusivity. Beverage brands that give permission to toggle between spirited and spirit-free. Food brands that innovate at the edges where health, indulgence, and functionality overlap.

Categories may be dissolving, but clarity is not disappearing. It is shifting. Segmentation, done well, becomes a tool to illuminate the pathways people take, the occasions that matter, and the cultural spaces where brands can show up with authenticity.

The future will not belong to brands that define their consumers. It will belong to brands that follow consumers as they define themselves.