In 2026, the most successful FMCG brands must master the art of the micro-treat while preparing for a macro-shift in AI-driven commerce.

Exhausted by negative cycles and unrelenting global strain, people are craving experiences that elevate, enlighten and shift perspective. This desire for transformation is reshaping the FMCG landscape – creating a dynamic tension between the deeply human and the powerfully automated.

The hunger for transformative experiences is palpable, with 86% of people drawn to encounters that inspire awe and wonder. This is pulling commerce back into the physical world, but with a new mandate. Simultaneously, a new class of AI collaborators is multiplying creative potential. 

To help you navigate and capitalize on these exciting new opportunities for growth, our vertical cut on the top 10 trends in FMCG from our "Future 100 : 2026" report will help you strategize for success in the year ahead. 

Top trends in FMCG from our Future 100 report include:

Anthropomorphized branding 01

#36: Anthropomorphized branding

In a cluttered market, 73% of people want brands to be more entertaining. Brand mascots and characters are making a comeback, creating fun, engaging narratives that cut through the noise and build memorable collaborations.

Treatonomics 01

#61: Treatonomics

With budgets under pressure, consumers are prioritizing small, uplifting rewards. For FMCG brands, this "treat economy" is a powerful driver for product innovation, marketing and building emotional resonance through moments of joy.

Acommerce 02

#68: Acommerce

AI agents are becoming the new shopping assistants, handling everything from comparison to purchase. This requires a strategic shift: FMCG brands must now optimize product data, attributes, and taxonomy to market directly to machines.

Download our 2026 Future 100 FMCG vertical cut here:

Acommerce, or agentic commerce, represents a fundamental shift where AI agents will autonomously make purchases on behalf of consumers, handling everything from grocery replenishment to price comparison. For FMCG brands, this means your marketing focus must expand from influencing humans to influencing machines. Success will depend on the quality and structure of your product data – treating your taxonomy, attributes, and API integrations as a primary marketing channel. Brands that are not "machine-readable" will become invisible in this new AI-driven ecosystem.

Treatonomics is the key economic trend where consumers, even in tight financial times, prioritize small, affordable indulgences that provide an emotional uplift and a sense of joy. For FMCG brands, this is a major growth opportunity. It means innovating around "status snacks," creating limited-edition drops, and marketing everyday products as moments of accessible luxury. By positioning your brand as a reliable source of joy, you can increase purchase frequency and build a powerful, lasting emotional connection with consumers.

In an age of digital noise, loyalty is no longer built on transactions alone – it's built on value, community and experience. The report highlights several strategies including Living loyalty, moving beyond simple points by rewarding consumers for behaviors that reflect their values, like sustainability efforts or wellness goals; Immersive experiences and the use of Ephemeral retail and brand activations to create memorable, shareable moments that engage all five senses; and Entertaining content that builds the kind of brand universes people want to inhabit through engaging AI storyworlds and fun, relatable Anthropomorphized branding that offers entertainment, not just ads.

Watch our Future 100 video

F100 2026 Promo Video 1

Welcome to the 12th edition of “The Future 100” – VML’s unparalleled research report examining key global trends. This report features our latest projections, interviews with top industry experts, exclusive statistics and global consumer insights for 2026 from a proprietary 16-country survey.

At a Glance
86%

Are drawn to encounters that inspire awe and wonder

At a Glance
73%

Want brands to be more entertaining.

At a Glance
49%

Report forming a meaningful relationship with AI

About The Future 100 report:

After another year marked by economic upheaval, polarizing political currents and environmental setbacks, 2026 will be a year for building resilience, courageous creativity and redrawing the boundaries of what’s possible. From the personal to the planetary, from human engineering to geoengineering the climate itself, a new class of creators and collaborators is multiplying potential in ways we are just beginning to imagine.

Helping to shape these worlds are AI tools that democratize world building and new economic models for building empires. As both creativity and AI go global, voices from Buenos Aires to Busan are challenging Western dominance and creating tools that reflect their own cultures.

Amidst this “metamorphic” current, the desire for human connection remains unmistakable. In the year ahead, human impulse will shape brand strategies, influencing the top marketing trends in 2026, and draw people back to immersive, high-impact experiences that demonstrate the value of authenticity and unlock infinite possibilities.

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