2025 isn’t just a new year; it’s a moment to pause, reflect, and recalibrate.

A quarter-century into this new millennium, the stakes for the CPG industry are higher than ever. Geopolitical shocks, rising costs, and shifting consumer priorities are creating ripple effects across the sector. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed.

But as we see it at Butterfly, complexity is fertile ground for growth. When businesses think harder and feel deeper, incredible opportunities emerge.

Inspired by Malcolm Gladwell’s Revenge of the Tipping Point (a reminder that change happens when the right pieces fall into place) here are five resolutions to help CPG leaders not just survive but thrive in 2025.

1. See innovation as a symphony, not a solo

Innovation isn’t a one-off sprint or a lone department’s responsibility; it’s a whole-business effort, a symphony where every piece works in harmony and every section playing its part.

Last year, Procter & Gamble restructured their approach to innovation, with their Connect + Develop” strategy to foster collaboration across departments and with external partners to drive growth. PepsiCo brought innovation closer to their commercial functions rather than hot housed in a separate entity.

Balancing the freedom for innovation to thrive with the need to anchor it in commercial realities to meet both customer and consumer needs is never simple. But in our experience, failure isn’t because the idea wasn’t strong enough; it was because the business wasn’t behind it.

What to do: 

• Make consumer and customer empathy everyone’s responsibility. Ensure all teams, not just marketing, are engaged with real consumer and customer needs through direct interactions, co-creation sessions, and shared insights that drive aligned innovation.
• Test for harmony, not perfection. Create pilot programs that don’t just test the product but also test how the business will support it operationally and commercially. Failure often isn’t about the idea; it’s about alignment across the business.
• Define pathways for scaling. Once an idea succeeds in a pilot, establish clear pathways to scale it efficiently, integrating it into the broader business strategy without losing momentum or focus.

2. Build a portfolio that bends without breaking

Resilience is the buzzword of our time, but it’s more than a business cliché. It’s a necessity.

Building a resilient portfolio means more than just adapting to local preferences; it’s about making strategic choices to align with evolving consumer needs while ensuring the business is ready to tackle future disruptions.

Nestlé’s Maggi flexes locally with flavours tailored to regional palates, while the global backbone stays strong, demonstrating how thoughtful localisation can meet diverse consumer needs. PepsiCo’s Lay’s adapts with flavours like Hot Pot in China and Magic Masala in India, while Kellanova’s Pringles offers regionally inspired options such as Ketchup in Canada and Tangy Tomato Twist in India. Even McDonald’s shows how localisation can create success stories, with offerings like the McAloo Tikki in India, crafted to suit cultural tastes and dietary habits.

At the same time, resilience requires building agility into operations and innovation. Mondelez’s ongoing investment in digital supply chain technology has allowed the company to pivot quickly, maintain availability, and reduce costs in response to market shifts. Similarly, Mars is exploring predictive analytics to enhance supply chain resilience, ensuring disruptions don’t derail growth.

This is portfolio management with purpose, designed to weather storms, meet consumers where they are, and position the business for what’s next.

What to do: 

• Audit your portfolio ruthlessly. Strip out what’s bloated, double down on what’s brilliant, and make room for what’s next.
• Think “global backbone, local soul.” Keep your core consistent but adapt to cultural nuances that drive deeper connections.
• Future-proof your supply chain. Partner strategically to ensure you can pivot quickly, avoiding the bottlenecks that plagued 2024.

3. Turn your value dial up to 11

Inflation has rewritten the rulebook for consumer spending, but here’s the secret: people will pay more for what feels worth it. Rather than chasing extrinsic drivers of premium (fancy pack, fancy flavour, fancy name), dig deeper.

Get to the heart of what truly matters to consumers: the needs they want met, the moments they want to elevate, the occasions that deserve something extra. Danone’s Activia thrives not because it’s yoghurt, but because it positions itself as a health solution in a pot. It taps into a universal desire for wellness, making every spoonful feel like an investment in self-care.

True value transcends the product itself. It’s about delivering meaning: whether that’s empowering consumers to feel healthier, giving them confidence in their choices, or adding delight to their daily lives. Premiumisation isn’t just about elevating a product; it’s about enriching the experience it provides.

The brands that win are those that make people feel something. When your product meets a need and creates a moment that feels meaningful, price becomes secondary. Build stories that connect, and consumers will see your value even when budgets are tight.

Value isn’t about surface; it’s about substance.

What to do: 

• Position your products as answers, not items. Premiumisation is about solving problems with purpose: better health, smarter sustainability, deeper joy.
• Give people flexible ways to buy in. Offer gold, silver, and bronze tiers that let consumers engage with your brand at a level that fits their needs and aspirations.
• Connect to what matters most. Use storytelling to show how your brand improves their lives, strengthens their families, and makes a difference for the planet.

4. Make purpose your business strategy, not just your PR strategy

Consumers care. Investors care. But here’s the catch: saying you’re purpose-driven isn’t enough – you have to prove it.

Purpose isn’t a campaign; it’s a business strategy that must permeate everything from product development to supply chain decisions.

Diageo is weaving water conservation into their product strategies, aligning their environmental goals with operational efficiency and long-term profitability. Procter & Gamble’s Tide brand exemplifies purpose-driven innovation, with its cold-water washing formula designed to reduce energy consumption while delivering the same cleaning power. Meanwhile, Danone has embedded purpose into its entire business model, achieving B Corp certification across multiple markets to demonstrate its commitment to balancing profit with social and environmental impact.

Purpose without proof is noise. Purpose with numbers is power.

What to do: 

• Connect your ESG goals to the bottom line. Show how sustainability isn’t a cost but an investment with tangible returns.
• Turn your purpose outward. Patagonia’s “Don’t Buy This Jacket” campaign turned a sustainability stance into a loyalty engine. How can your purpose resonate like that?
• Engage investors with the long game. Show them how purpose builds resilience, trust, and growth, not just goodwill.

5. Simplify, simplify, simplify

In a world drowning in noise, clarity cuts through.

Kraft Heinz has shown the magic of doing fewer things brilliantly. Reckitt is divesting lower-value brands to double down on its core, growth-driving portfolio. Unilever has been streamlining for years, shedding entire categories to sharpen its focus on what matters most. Meanwhile, GSK and Johnson & Johnson have taken bold steps to separate their Pharma and Consumer Health businesses, with Sanofi now following suit.

These are not just financial moves; they’re strategic choices that free up resources, inspire focus, and build a clearer path to growth. Simplicity isn’t just nice; it’s transformational.

What to do: 

• Simplify your portfolio. What’s adding clutter without contributing value? Let it go.
• Simplify your story. What’s the one thing you want your consumers to know? Make it unforgettable.
• Simplify your operations. Automate the mundane, and free your people to focus on the meaningful.

2025: A year to build tipping points

As Gladwell writes in Revenge of the Tipping Point, the biggest shifts don’t happen by accident; they happen when systems align.

In 2025, it’s not enough to reflect the world. You need to challenge it. This is the year to think harder, feel deeper, and create the momentum that will shape not just the next year, but the next quarter-century.

At Butterfly, we believe the best ideas come alive when bold strategies, human stories, and vibrant thinking collide. If you’re ready to find new ways to grow, let’s make 2025 your tipping point. We’d love to help you create a future that’s bold, bright, and unapologetically human.