Amid Consumer IPO Logjam, Picky Shoppers Take the Spotlight

Consumer companies are staring down a stark divide: Shoppers either want ultracheap goods, like $3 crop tops from sites like Temu, or high-end items, like $300 running shoes from On Holding, a sneaker company that went public in 2021.

That’s according to investors, analysts and executives I spoke with at a Goldman Sachs retail conference this week. They all emphasized a variation of the same theme: When money is tighter or uncertainty is higher, as is the case now, shoppers want to feel like they’re spending on things that are really worth it.