Rise of a way of life drug: weight reduction jabs will pressure extra than simply meals manufacturers to pivot

“It was initially a US phenomenon,” says Chloé Depiesse, managing director at Havas and head of its GLP-1 consultancy. “But it’s clearly becoming more global.”

Disrupting each sector

Ad community Havas launched its consultancy service final 12 months in response to disruptive improvements in well being and wellness, significantly the rise of GLP-1 drugs. At the time, the company projected the GLP-1 market would develop to an estimated 31.5 million customers by 2035.

Depiesse notes that the agency was early in “identifying the magnitude of disruption” these medicine would deliver. What Havas is witnessing, and what purchasers want to acknowledge, is that that is “far more” than a healthcare or weight reduction dialog. The ripple results prolong properly past anticipated sectors like meals and beverage, reaching into tourism, vogue, luxurious, magnificence and tech.

Publicis Luxe can be getting ready its purchasers. Deputy managing director and head of planning Deborah Marino informed The Drum that it’s not the “letters AI or GPT” which are the “real revolution” in adland, however as a substitute it’s “GLP”.

When individuals use GLP-1 drugs for weight reduction, their urge for food sometimes decreases, resulting in modifications within the amount and sort of meals they devour. That a lot is anticipated and extensively studied. But what is very compelling is how these behavioral shifts are starting to affect broader life-style decisions and shopper patterns throughout a number of sectors. This, in flip, might probably have a profound affect on how manufacturers, and never simply these within the pharmaceutical area, must future-proof themselves.

“It’s created this new addressable audience that can be interesting and promising from a business standpoint, for some categories, or create a value creation mindset,” continues Depiesse. “A new portfolio, a new product could be created to tailor to the new needs of GLP-1 users. But for some others, they’re in a risk mitigation mindset. This is a scary disruption. I’m thinking about categories like the beverage industry, which initially are more fearful of what it can create.”

Depiesse says Havas’s in-house staff isn’t nearly advert campaigns; it helps manufacturers navigate change, handle threat, and rethink their enterprise fashions. For hesitant corporations, the staff goals to show uncertainty into momentum. While it’s labored with some pharma gamers, particularly on GLP-1 go-to-market plans, its focus extends properly past healthcare.

Much of its vitality goes to fast-moving shopper sectors like food and drinks, magnificence, and health. Depiesse notes {that a} latest discuss at a significant health occasion in Germany sparked an obvious uptick in consumer curiosity in that area. When requested which pharma corporations it’s working with on GLP-1 methods, she declines to call names.

At Publicis Luxe, it’s an identical story. Marino says L’Oréal, for instance, is beginning to join the dots. “Every brand, especially in luxury, is going to get involved in the mutation of people,” she states.

Creative affect and regulatory constraints

Advertising laws fluctuate extensively by nation. In the UK, they’re particularly strict for prescription-only medicines (POMs). At the beginning of July, the Advertising Standards Authority dominated that manufacturers, significantly pharmacies, are banned from instantly or not directly selling weight-loss pharmaceuticals like Wegovy or Ozempic. Even phrases resembling “Weight Loss Injections” or “GLP-1,” in addition to associated imagery like pens or vials, are prohibited, even when the drug title will not be talked about.

In the US, promoting is ruled by business self-regulation, shopper safety teams, and authorities businesses, such because the FTC, and model names can be utilized in POM promoting.

“GLP-1s by themselves aren’t any different than any regulated pharma drug that we would advertise to consumers, and we do scores of those,” explains Havas Health’s world chief inventive officer Eric Weisberg. “Where things differ is the audience for GLP-1s is one that continues to evolve, and those brands are behaving more like consumer brands, particularly the way that consumers relate with them, the way they want to interact with them, the way they treat them as part of the healthier lifestyle.”

“They have this cascading effect, both functionally and emotionally, with basically, a much wider range of things that you do in your life,” he continues. “And so, it has changed the way that we market them.”

Advertising the complete image

Given the promoting restrictions in lots of international locations, it could appear tough to speak the complete breadth of GLP-1 drugs in campaigns.

“Culture and society are building a story around GLP-1s and their benefits,” says Weisberg. “The destigmatization of people on these, a lot of that is being handled by society, by influencers, by celebrities. Sometimes, healthcare companies are responsible for building the market and building the destigmatization of disease and the barriers of entry to that. In a lot of ways, that’s being handled by society in general. And so the trust of the products and the destigmatization of going on them is happening at a societal level, not the brand level.”

Havas’s medical anthropology group observe lead, Jennifer Tsitsopoulos, provides that the media narrative within the UK doesn’t mirror the truth of the GLP-1 group. “Not everyone on a GLP-1 is a celebrity. And I think while the celebrities allowed us to make it acceptable and break some social stigma, they [the media] are also making it feel like not the everyday person is on these things,” she continues. “And right now in the UK, it’s Wales that has the number one prescription for GLP-1s.”

Weisberg notes that what started as a barrier – the injection – has now change into a health-affirming act. Events like “skinny jab parties” illustrate how the main focus has shifted from meals to group, journey and self-care, reshaping not simply habits but additionally emotional and social lives.

The GLP-1 ‘mindset’

Currently, the messaging round GLP-1 medicine focuses on weight and weight problems. However, Tsitsopoulos says there’s a “shift” towards unlocking the idea of GLP-1 as a “mindset.”

“It comes down more to control of your impulses than it does about how you immediately appear to the outside world,” she explains.

“We’ve been studying this community, and the number one thing on their mind is that they feel more positive about themselves and the world they live in. I can’t think of another situation right now where consumers would say they feel more positive, taking a brand, about the world that we live in.”

For Tsitsopoulos, it’s about tapping into management, the approach to life GLP-1’s help, and the concept of continued happiness that goes past simply the weekly injection, or sooner or later, possibly taking a capsule.

Part of that mindset stems from how the medicine works within the mind by quieting meals noise. Havas has discovered that customers are extra open to new hobbies like gardening and studying. It even influences how individuals date and journey.

“People are more willing to travel to begin with, and within that, they’re looking for perhaps more physical activity,” provides Depiesse. “Some unexpected data is the report from Jeffrey’s Financial Group a while ago that was talking about how GLP-1s will likely reduce fuel consumption for companies, because obviously, with lower passenger weights, airline companies are likely to consume less fuel for each flight. So, these are the type of unexpected ripple effects or data points that we’ve seen.”

Sex, courting and dopamine

Beyond weight reduction, there are less-discussed results. “Sex, sexuality, embracing getting frisky again,” Tsitsopoulos says. “You can also imagine that having an impact on STDs.” She explains that purchasers typically include too slim a spotlight. “We work in food, so we should be talking protein,” she says. “It’s not always what you assume it to be at first glance.”

GLP-1 drugs additionally cut back the necessity for dopamine, altering the mind’s reward system. “It means that everything that is a craving habit, you don’t sense that any more,” provides Marino. “Everything that relates to pleasure is going to be less impactful. Dopamine is not going to be driving your life any more.” This might even have an effect on how individuals have interaction with courting apps like Tinder and Bumble.

Rewriting cultural norms

Last 12 months, Havas performed a examine on Santa. “Santa is now skinny in most advertising,” Tsitsopoulos observes. “And how does that change our relationship to our metaphoric icons in this world? Is there still a role for being a bit chubby? Do we no longer find chubby as funny?”

She emphasizes that the dialog shouldn’t be about dimension, however well being. “Unfortunately, right now, GLP-1s don’t necessarily give you a healthier mindset, and that’s the untapped conversation. They don’t make you crave carrots or salad. What it does is give you the power to control your impulses. We still need to work as a society to fix our relationship with food and food systems, but that is an untapped conversation that we as brands and marketers can be doing more of.”

Weisberg believes these drugs will trigger pharma manufacturers to behave extra like life-style manufacturers. “These brands are going to start to be positioned more like lifestyle brands and will look more similar, I think, to the gyms you choose, the different cars you choose, and the clothing brands you bring into your life. And those brands are going to have meaning that most healthcare products heretofore didn’t need to have.”

“In 2025 and onwards, every brand needs a GLP-1 strategy,” says Depiesse. “It’s no longer something superficial.”

The end of impulse spending

From a luxury standpoint, Marino believes that impulsive purchases, especially those made in January, are ending. She points to brands such as LVMH or Moët & Chandon. A glass of champagne, once seen as indulgent, no longer holds the same emotional appeal. The shift is not about desire or celebration, but about purpose.

She contrasts two watchmakers as a metaphor. Audemars Piguet promotes self-expression and living in the moment. Patek Philippe, by contrast, is about legacy and meaningful investment.

In the emerging “dopamine-free” economy, she believes the Patek Philippe narrative will resonate more. Consumers are becoming more rational and focused on long-term value over immediate gratification. Brands will need to align with values of longevity, purpose, and structure.

“You’re going to be thin, but you’re going to be physically distorted. The perfect body will be the ultimate luxury,” she explains. “We’re going to see people splitting into categories between the ‘Ozempic Elite’ on the one side and the ‘naturalist’ on the other side. Brands could be choosing sides in relation to that.”