For years, brand growth followed a familiar formula: buy attention, optimize digital ads, and scale reach. It worked for a while, but then audiences started tuning out. Today, the average consumer is exposed to between 4,000 and 10,000 ads every day. Attention has become scarce, and traditional marketing is struggling to hold it. As a result, many companies across industries are shifting towards something far more durable: experience-led engagement.
This shift is part of what economists call the experience economy, a market expected to exceed $12 trillion globally by 2028. Instead of only selling products, brands are designing moments people want to participate in, like events, communities, and cultural gatherings, and shared experiences.
The data behind this shift is compelling. Research by EventTrack shows 91% of consumers report more positive perception of a brand after attending a live experience, while 85% say they are more likely to buy after participating in one. Another study by Freeman found 64% of event attendees share their experience online, turning physical engagement into organic digital reach. In other words, experiences do something advertising often cannot: they build trust through participation.
The shift is particularly visible among younger audiences. Studies show Gen Z consumers are significantly more responsive to brands that create authentic communities, not just marketing campaigns. Across industries, companies are responding. Apparel brands host pop-ups and community launches. Food brands host tastings, cultural gatherings, and culinary events. Technology companies are turning product launches into large-scale experiential moments. The objective is no longer just visibility, it is belonging.
Within Kings Global, this shift towards experience-led engagement is visible across several businesses. The group operates 25+ brands across industries ranging from food and fashion to research, aviation, and experiential platforms, touching millions of consumers every month.
One example is Underrated Club, a fashion and culture platform built around a community-first philosophy. Rather than treating apparel as just another retail category, the brand brings audiences together through events, gatherings, and culture-led experiences, where music, fashion and community intersect.
The same principle appears across the group’s broader ecosystem.
Kings Global’s food and dining brands create culinary experiences designed to shared socially rather than simply consumed. From pizza concepts to global cuisine formats, these businesses are built around the idea that food is as much about experience as it is about product.
Meanwhile Kings Research, the group’s research and advisory platform, helps businesses understand how consumers behave in modern markets; emphasizing that trust, identity, and experience increasingly influence buying decisions more than price alone.
This integrated perspective matters because consumer behavior has fundamentally changed. According to PwC, 73% of global consumers say experience is a key factor in purchasing decisions, while Mckinsey reports that brands delivering meaningful engagement grow 2-3 times faster than competitors relying only on traditional marketing.
For companies operating in crowded industries: from apparel and food to media and technology, this shift has real implications. The brands that win today are not simply the ones that advertise the most. They are the ones that create environments where people feel part of something. That could be a cultural event, a shared meal, a fashion community, or a gathering built around music or ideas.
Digital platforms will remain important, but increasingly they act as amplifiers rather than the core experience itself. The real connection happens elsewhere: where people meet, participate, and create memories. And in a marketplace where attention is fleeting, what people experience often matters more than what they’re told.
