The Latest Research from Hakuhodo Institute of Live and Living (HILL) ASEAN
Updated: Sep 20, 2023
Experts predict Asia's economy will be booming in 2023, even with the global money struggles expected next year. Pretty wild that Asia's still thriving while America and Europe are slowing down. Makes you wonder - what's powering Asia's economic motor? And what kind of consumer behavior do people in these countries have?
Seeing this, the Hakuhodo Institute of Live and Living (HILL) ASEAN, as an institution that is “data-crunching heart of the Hakuhodo Group” which has been established since 2014, conducted a study to find out. The HILL ASEAN team consists of Rian Prabana, Narpati Adityasa, Eka Harithsyah, Inayati Suryani as part of Hakuhodo Digital who is part of this team as well, Devi Attamimi, Reza Pebrianto, Sanu Pratomo, and Wimala Djafa discovered a new fact where the welfare of the middle class has a positive impact and has the potential to become a strongest group for the ASEAN consumer market.
When they looked at the data more closely, they found a new phenomenon: some groups were moving from the middle class to the upper class because their financial situation was improving. That's why the ASEAN HILL Team called their research "Emerging Affluent: Discovering the Invisible Class in ASEAN." and shared their findings at the 9th ASEAN HILL Forum in early August.
The research was announced offline at Soehanna Hall in SCBD Jakarta as part of Hakuhodo Inc.'s commitment to developing the world of data-based advertising. The HILL ASEAN team is also dedicated to providing data that can help companies with their marketing strategies in ASEAN countries and understanding the developing lifestyles in the region. They relate this to Hakuhodo's principle of sei-katsu-sha, which means understanding individuals holistically.
According to Devi Attamimi, Director of Hakuhodo International Indonesia & Institute Director of HILL ASEAN, the term 'Emerging Affluent' is used to refer to the upper-class segment of society in this study. She also said that when they connected the ASEAN sei-katsu-sha to this research, there was a fascinating story in it. Every individual in an ASEAN country who falls into this category is highly motivated to increase their income and social status.
The Result
Before we get into the results of this research, it's good to know the methods used by the ASEAN HILL Team. They used both qualitative and quantitative methods, which means they asked people questions and analyzed data in Japan and six ASEAN countries, that is Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
The goal was to dig deeper into the mindsets and habits of folks joining the emerging affluent aka upper-crust club. The plan is to take the study results and turn them into useful facts and perspectives. That can help shape marketing strategies for selling consumer goods in Southeast Asia.
So, here's what the ASEAN HILL team found out regrading the characteristics of ASEAN sei-katsu-sha which are included in the emerging affluent segment:
Conclusion
With the presence of the results of this research, HILL ASEAN is eager to continue supporting companies in various countries, especially Indonesia, and hopes that their research will help companies succeed and thrive.
Hakuhodo Digital, part of Hakuhodo International Indonesia, also lends a hand making HILL's materials each year. We analyze consumer trends in Indonesia and Southeast Asia to pull useful insights from the research. These can shape strategies for our brand clients.
We understand that every business is unique, and we tailor our services to meet the specific needs of our clients. We are dedicated to helping our clients succeed by supporting you to achieve your business goals. So, is your brand ready to face the omni-mizers segment or emerging affluent? Or do you need a team to prepare a digital marketing strategy based on updated data to win this segment?
Contact us today (bd@h-digital.id) to learn more about how Hakuhodo Digital can help you grow your business.
Digging into the newest research release from HILL ASEAN is always fascinating because Hakuhodo approaches market intelligence from their signature sei-katsu-sha philosophy—viewing people as holistic, living individuals with complex emotional lives rather than just cold economic consumers who buy widgets. When you look at how rapid digitalization, hyper-localized gig economies, and shifting generational dynamics are playing out across Southeast Asian markets, standard demographic charts fail to capture the real human pulse. While skimming through a market research methodology overview and consumer sociology breakdown on Veergame, it became crystal clear that brand campaigns fall completely flat when they treat Southeast Asia as a monolithic region instead of recognizing the distinct cultural nuances between Bangkok, Jakarta, and Manila.
People want lightning-fast on-demand delivery, yet they are increasingly questioning single-use plastic waste and demanding authentic ethical practices from local brands. A regional brand strategist on Jaiclub posted a great summary yesterday analyzing shifting consumer sentiment, showing that brands offering seamless digital interfaces while actively backing local sustainable causes are securing the strongest customer loyalty right now.
The research around the evolving definition of family and domestic independence across modern urban centers in Southeast Asia really caught my attention. The growing presence of solo-living professionals and non-traditional households is dramatically transforming everything from residential apartment layouts to single-portion grocery packaging and personal mobility choices. Stumbled into an engaging retail sociology debate on RaxiWin earlier today, and attendees were pointing out that consumer goods companies clinging to outdated nuclear-family advertising tropes are missing out on an enormous, self-directed market segment.
What makes HILL ASEAN's qualitative field research stand out from generic boardroom slide decks is their dedication to in-depth home visits and real lifestyle interviews. Sitting down in people's living rooms, seeing how they arrange their daily essentials, and listening to how they balance career ambitions with elder-care obligations uncovers behavioral friction points that survey checkboxes simply miss. Caught a thoughtful analysis detailing ethnographic marketing fieldwork on Dm First last night, emphasizing that observing unfiltered daily habits provides ten times more actionable insight than sterile online survey forms.
The intersection between mobile-first social commerce and community-driven trust in Southeast Asia is another massive takeaway from this latest report. Livestream shopping and community group-buying aren't just transactional sales channels in this part of the world; they serve as active social gathering spaces where humor, peer recommendations, and instant messaging create a sense of shared belonging. A digital media planner over on Dm win noted this morning that understanding communal digital behaviors is the secret to unlocking sustainable e-commerce engagement across ASEAN territories.