Single Serve

The Single-Serve Revolution

The Pendulum swings!
50 years ago, almost all consumer goods were in smaller packages than are standard today. As wholesale distribution prospered, family size and mega-packs became the norm by the 1990’s, with cost/volume driving decisions. Interestingly, this phenomenon did not take hold in Europe, when home sizes were generally smaller.

Flash forward to today. Major metropolitan cities in North America are dominated by condos – with much smaller footprints. Storage becomes an issue and the cultural and demographic trends shift the focus from cost savings to convenience. Today, 27% of the population in US & Canada lives alone. In larger centers like Manhattan, San Francisco & Toronto, 40+% lives alone. Singles account for $2 Trillion in consumer spending.

Let’s look at a few of the driving factors in that shift: 

Here’s the kicker: 44% of all adult eating now happens alone.

Single serve has become the norm.