+44 (0)203 693 3150

BIC Segmentation Case Study Vision One

BIC Segmentation Case Study

The Challenge

With an 80 year heritage of creating simple, affordable products used daily by millions, BIC wanted to understand how the COVID 19 pandemic was reshaping behaviour, attitudes and psychological needs. As part of its corporate social responsibility programme, BIC sought to explore the emotional and psychosocial impact of the pandemic on creativity, education and workplace behaviours.

The challenge was to uncover how these shifts were playing out across three culturally distinct markets Brazil, France and the United States and to translate this understanding into meaningful, customer-centred action.

Consumer Market Research Case Study

Research Objectives

The primary objective was to understand how COVID 19 had influenced psychological states, behaviours and motivations related to creativity, learning and working environments. BIC wanted to identify how people across different cultures were adapting to new routines at home, in education and at work, and how these changes affected their relationship with stationery and creative tools.

A further objective was to segment audiences based on psychological and behavioural differences, enabling BIC to better understand varied needs across markets and identify opportunities to provide relevant, supportive interventions during and beyond the pandemic.

Research Approach

Vision One designed a robust quantitative research programme using three bespoke online surveys, each focused on one of the core pillars creativity, education and workplace. The surveys incorporated established psychological frameworks including Social Values, OCEAN personality traits and Creative Thinking models to capture both behavioural and emotional dimensions.

Fieldwork was conducted across Brazil, France and the United States, with samples structured to reflect diverse audiences within each market. This approach allowed for cross cultural comparison while maintaining depth in psychological insight and behavioural understanding.

Findings

Analysis applied a segmentation lens grounded in psychological modelling, revealing clear differences in how creativity, learning and working were experienced across cultures and contexts.

The research highlighted how emotional states, values and personality traits influenced engagement with stationery in home, school and workplace settings. It uncovered distinct psychological needs emerging from pandemic driven disruption, from emotional reassurance to structure, expression and productivity support.

Importantly, the findings demonstrated that stationery played a meaningful role beyond function, acting as a tool for control, creativity and emotional resilience during periods of uncertainty.

Action & Recommendations

The insights provided BIC with a clear framework for action, enabling the brand to support customers more meaningfully across home, education and workplace environments.

Recommendations focused on helping people overcome psychological barriers created by COVID 19, reinforcing creativity, focus and emotional wellbeing. The research informed how BIC could align product communication, innovation and CSR initiatives with real human needs, ensuring relevance across markets while remaining true to its mission of accessible, purposeful design.

Qualitative Research Agency
Kendra Furey, Head of Brands (Vision One)

Related Services

Consumer Research
Customer Segmentation
Brand Research
International Research
Market Exploration
Central England Cooperative Brand Research Case Study Vision One

The Challenge Central England Co-operative (CEC) is one of the UK’s largest independent retailers, operating over 400 trading outlets. As part of a strategic exercise to define and refresh its purpose, vision and values, early internal work highlighted the need for broader, more inclusive insight. The challenge was to ensure that CEC’s evolving brand direction genuinely reflected the views of customers, colleagues and key stakeholders. Vision One was commissioned to design and deliver a large-scale research programme that could capture these perspectives and provide a robust foundation for future brand development. Research Objectives The research was designed to inform the development of CEC’s brand purpose, values and messaging. The key objectives were to: Together, these objectives aimed to ensure CEC’s brand direction was authentic, relevant and widely supported. Research Approach Vision One implemented a comprehensive, mixed-method research programme to capture insight from multiple audiences. The approach included: This approach ensured that brand decisions were grounded in broad, representative insight. Findings The research delivered a rich understanding of how CEC’s purpose and values were perceived across audiences. It identified the elements of the brand that resonated most strongly and clarified expectations around CEC’s role as a co-operative retailer. Importantly, the research…

Coop Customer Segmentation Study

GE Capital International Case Study Vision One

The Challenge GE Capital, the financial services division of General Electric, supports customers closely aligned with GE’s industrial businesses. To maintain service excellence across diverse European markets, GE Capital needed a clearer understanding of customer satisfaction within its Commercial Distribution Finance (CDF) division. The challenge was to assess satisfaction across products and services while capturing nuanced, market-specific feedback. Importantly, GE Capital required insight that went beyond headline metrics, enabling it to understand customer sentiment, identify improvement opportunities and prioritise actions across a complex, multi-country B2B customer base. Research Objectives The research was designed to provide a detailed view of customer satisfaction across GE Capital’s European CDF customers. The key objectives were to: Together, these objectives aimed to deliver both diagnostic understanding and practical guidance for improvement. Research Approach Vision One implemented a qualitative-led, multi-market research programme across Europe. The approach included: This approach enabled GE Capital to gain rich, comparable insight while respecting linguistic and cultural differences. Findings The research delivered a clear view of customer satisfaction levels across GE Capital’s European CDF customer base. It highlighted how customers evaluated different aspects of GE Capital’s products and services, identifying both strengths and areas for improvement. The qualitative depth of the…

GE Capital Success Story

Stagg Chilli Vision One

The Challenge Hormel was developing an innovative new range of microwaveable Ready To Eat (RTE) meals under the name Spiced for Life. The range was positioned using Ayurvedic philosophy, incorporating herbs and spices associated with health-giving properties and high antioxidant levels. Before progressing to launch, Hormel needed to evaluate the strength of the overall concept and assess consumer response to nine potential product variants. The challenge was to identify which elements of the proposition resonated most strongly, validate taste performance, and determine how the range should be refined to maximise relevance, appeal and commercial viability. Research Objectives The research was designed to evaluate both the Spiced for Life concept and individual product variants within a real-world ready-meal context. The key objectives were to: These objectives aimed to support confident decision making ahead of range development and optimisation. Research Approach Vision One conducted a large-scale programme of Central Location Tests (CLTs) across multiple UK venues. The approach included: This methodology ensured robust, scalable insight grounded in real category users and realistic consumption contexts. Findings The research revealed that the most compelling aspect of the Spiced for Life proposition was its unique storage benefit. The ability to store the product without refrigeration,…

Stagg Chilli Product Research Case Study