Mapping the Infant Formula Journey: A Multi-Market Consumer Study

Client

A Major Infant Nutrition Brand

Service

Consumer Qualitative Research / Online Bulletin Board

Sector

Food & Beverage / Infant Nutrition

Coverage

Mexico, Vietnam & Saudi Arabia

A major infant nutrition brand partnered with us to understand the infant formula consumer journey across Mexico, Vietnam, and Saudi Arabia. The research followed mothers from early consideration and formula initiation through continued use, switching, and eventually stopping formula.

It also looked at the touchpoints and sources of influence shaping those decisions, helping the client understand how the formula feeding journey changed across different stages and markets, and where information, reassurance, and brand communication could play a meaningful role.

The Challenge

The challenge was to understand how mothers moved through an infant formula purchase journey that could shift quickly from one stage to the next. Decisions made before birth, at the point of initiation, during continued use, or when switching brands were shaped by different needs, influences, and sources of information.

Key areas of focus included:

• What triggered consideration of infant formula before and after birth.

• The reasons behind planned versus reactive formula introduction.

• Factors shaping continued use, infant formula switching, and stopping.

• How different touchpoints influenced decisions at each stage of the journey.

• The role of healthcare professionals, digital sources, family and peers, and retail touchpoints.

• Differences across exclusive formula feeding and combination feeding.

• How the journey varied across Mexico, Vietnam, and Saudi Arabia.

• Where brand information and reassurance could feel most relevant within the journey.

The research needed to connect these individual decision points into one clear path while still accounting for the different realities mothers experienced across markets and feeding situations.

What We Did

We designed a three-market online bulletin board study with mothers of babies aged 0–6 months who were currently using infant formula. The format gave participants space to reflect on their feeding experiences while allowing the research to follow how infant formula decisions changed as use began, continued, switched, or stopped across the journey.

The study included:

• 60 completed participants across Mexico, Vietnam, and Saudi Arabia.

• 20 completed participants in each market.

• Mothers of babies aged 0–6 months, with first-time mothers preferred.

• A mix of exclusive formula feeding and combination feeding.

• Participants who had introduced formula either as a planned choice or in response to a specific need.

• Current brand users, competitor users, and switchers.

• A mix of influence profiles, including healthcare professionals, digital sources, family and peers, and retail touchpoints.

• Working mothers, mothers on maternity leave, and non-working mothers.

• A 90-minute online bulletin board conducted through Recollective.

• Participation through phone, tablet, or computer, with multimedia activities where relevant.

• Local-market moderation, translation, and platform management across all three countries.

The range of participant profiles allowed the client to see how infant formula behavior differed across feeding situations, brand experiences, and sources of influence rather than treating all mothers as one group.

The Impact of Research

The research helped the client build a more connected view of infant formula consumer behavior, showing how needs, influences, and decision points changed from initial consideration through continued use, switching, and stopping.

Key outcomes included:

• A better understanding of the triggers behind formula consideration and initiation.

• Context around planned versus reactive introduction of infant formula.

• Insight into the factors linked to continued use, switching, and stopping.

• A mapped view of the touchpoints influencing mothers at different stages of the journey.

• The role of healthcare professionals, digital sources, family and peers, and retail touchpoints in shaping decisions.

• Greater context around how feeding situations, brand experience, and sources of influence shaped different paths.

• Comparable perspectives across Mexico, Vietnam, and Saudi Arabia.

• A stronger basis for identifying where information, reassurance, and brand communication could be most relevant.

By connecting these stages, the research helped the client see where the biggest shifts in infant formula purchase behavior were happening and which touchpoints needed more attention.

If you’re looking to understand what is really driving consumer choices across the journey, contact us to bring those decision points into sharper focus and guide what comes next.