Pulse of a Changing Kingdom: Inside the Saudi Consumer Revolution.

Saudi Arabia is no longer an emerging story. It is a movement — a movement of people, culture, ambition, and experiences. And at the heart of it stands a new Saudi consumer.

For business leaders, this isn’t just another market signal. It’s a wake-up call. A billion-dollar consumer story is being rewritten in real time, and brands that don’t adapt risk being edited out of the narrative.

Just five years ago, Saudi Arabia didn’t issue tourist visas. Entertainment was limited, and consumer life followed familiar, contained rhythms. Today, more than 27 million international visitors arrive annually. 20 million people throng Riyadh Season, while global sporting spectacles are stitched into the national calendar.

Yet a paradox runs deep: while Saudi Arabia leads the Gulf in total consumer spend, outside food and beverage, per-capita consumption is still only a third of the UAE and a fraction of Europe or the US. That is not weakness. It is headroom. Untapped space. A runway for brands bold enough to move with cultural precision.

Ten Shifts Defining the New Consumer

The transformation is not linear. It is explosive, multilayered, and cultural. We see ten defining shifts — five in who the Saudi consumer is, and five in how they behave.

Scale and Youth

By 2035, Saudi Arabia will count over 100 million consumers if you include residents, expatriates, and tourists. Nearly 70 million tourists annually will add to the market’s diversity. But numbers alone don’t tell the story: by then, 77% of household income will be controlled by millennials, Gen Z, and Gen Alpha. These generations are digital, expressive, and unforgiving of irrelevance.

Women as Architects

Perhaps no change is more symbolic than women’s rise. By 2035, 37% of the workforce will be female, many in high-skill, high-income roles. She is no longer a background character in the economy. She earns, decides, and shapes categories — from food to finance, mobility to wellness. Any brand not designed with women at the center is not designed at all.

The Middle Class Majority

Three-quarters of Saudis will soon be middle class. This is where the future of consumption lives: in households seeking value with aspiration. Affordability and creativity must coexist. The winning brands won’t simply be cheaper — they will make the everyday feel premium without alienating price sensitivity.

Hubs as Cultural Stages

Riyadh is racing toward 15 million residents. NEOM rises like a futuristic dream. The Red Sea coast is being remade into a leisure magnet. Saudi cities are no longer just urban grids — they are cultural stages, where commerce, entertainment, and identity converge.

A New Consumer Psychology

From Products to Experiences

The Saudi consumer doesn’t just ask “what do I buy?” They ask “where does this take me?”A ready meal isn’t food; it’s time. A football ticket isn’t sport; it’s belonging. A dress isn’t fabric; it’s self-expression. In this landscape, experience has become currency.

Zero Boundaries

Consumers glide seamlessly between store, screen, and social. By 2035, e-commerce could hit $60 billion, but the real power is in blending physical retail with digital and social — an omnichannel dance where the line disappears.

Zero Middle

The middle ground is vanishing. People trade down for value or trade up for indulgence. The undecided middle is shrinking fast.

Zero Loyalty

Experimentation is the new loyalty. Young Saudis switch brands with ease, hungry for surprise and authenticity. For CMOs, this isn’t a crisis — it’s an opening. If loyalty is fragile, disruption can be instant.

Conscious and Healthy

Saudi consumers are becoming as conscious as they are connected. 40% care about sustainability. 70% chase healthier food. 65% are willing to pay more for it. Consciousness is no longer niche; it is mainstream. Responsibility isn’t a differentiator — it’s the baseline of relevance.

The Call to Brand Leaders

The new Saudi consumer is bigger, younger, faster, and more conscious than any market the region has seen before. For CMOs and CEOs, the challenge isn’t whether to act — it’s how boldly, how creatively, and how credibly to act.

• Move at the speed of culture. Waiting for certainty is already being late.

• Design for meaning, not just margin. Affordability can be aspirational. Luxury can be inclusive. Sustainability can be desirable.

• Earn, don’t assume. Loyalty, trust, relevance — these are not legacies. They are daily negotiations.

Saudi Arabia is not just a growth story. It is a cultural reset button for brands across the world. To win here is to prove you can win anywhere in the future of consumer culture. To hesitate is to be edited out of history by a generation that does not wait.

The new Saudi consumer isn’t waiting. Neither should you.