Australian consumers trust in purpose-driven brands

Bunnings is the most trusted brand for customer experience excellence in Australia 2020-2023.

Brand purpose and impact are amongst the key factors Australian consumers are looking at, with 61% claiming to rely on retail brands if they hold up ethical and philanthropic practices, according to a KPMG report.

Previous years reflected varied responses from consumers, with consumers in 2020 going “back to basics” and respondents in 2021 finding security in personalised services. But in 2023 Australian consumers are more keen on evaluating product value through their materials or their purposes.

Modern-day Australian consumers have also relied more on non-grocery retail brands, with eight of them becoming several of the top brands in Australia for customer excellence. Australia-based hardware chain Bunnings lands on top of the list, followed by The Body Shop and Mecca. New entrants in the list include Apple, JB Hi-Fi, and Dan Murphy’s, which re-entered the list after a year-long hiatus.

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According to the KPMG Customer Experience Excellence Report 2023, this trend lies in current consumers relying more on economic-value-based choices than leading brands. Around 97% of respondents found that cost-of-living conditions have dictated their shopping habits. This also leads to a 3.8% decline in the key Customer Experience Excellence metric.

“Leading brands have been able to integrate these digital journeys with in-store experiences, recognising many Australians have retail journeys that begin online but also include an in-store touchpoint,” Carmen Bekker, partner-in-charge of KPMG Customer, said.