1 in 10 Australian adults surveyed now reports using a GLP-1 weight-loss medication. EY-Parthenon estimates adoption could reach between 17% and 30% of the adult population within a decade, potentially representing more than seven million Australians.
This is not just a healthcare story, it reveals a much bigger consumer truth.
EY's 2026 Australian study found that GLP-1 users dined out 44% less, while their reported alcohol consumption fell by 41%. At the same time, 78% prioritised higher-quality, nutritious and protein-rich food, while 57% increased their spending on clothing.
Research published in the Journal of Marketing Research, covering approximately 150,000 US households, supports this pattern. Grocery spending fell by 5.3% within six months of GLP-1 adoption, with the largest reductions occurring in calorie-dense and processed foods. Spending at fast-food restaurants, coffee shops and other limited-service venues declined by around 8%.
These findings point to the rise of what I’d call the shrinking consumer. That's someone whose appetite for volume is decreasing, while their desire for quality, wellbeing, appearance and experience is growing.
For decades, the accepted model across many consumer categories has been that growth comes from more: larger portions, more occasions, greater frequency and bigger baskets.
If millions of consumers begin to physically want less, brands will need a different model for growth.
I believe great brand ideas must be both true and new. Truth without newness is easily ignored; newness without truth can feel insincere or gratuitous.
The truth here is a measurable change in consumption. People may eat less, drink less and reconsider familiar habits while redirecting expenditure towards products and experiences they value more.
But that truth alone is not a strategy. Every brand still needs to find something new and distinctive within it, an idea it can credibly own and that its audience will find compelling.
For one brand, that might mean redefining indulgence around quality rather than quantity. For another, it could mean designing smaller but more valuable occasions.
For fashion, beauty, fitness and travel brands, it may mean helping consumers express a changing sense of identity, confidence and progress.
Understanding how demand is being redistributed will put brands in a better position to unlock new opportunities, by identifying which occasions are contracting, which needs are becoming more important and where displaced expenditure is moving.
The brands that respond best will recognise that the shrinking consumer is not necessarily a shrinking commercial opportunity. They will follow the changing definition of value and reshape their products, experiences and propositions around it.