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Putting the Consumer at the Centre: Insights from Cannes Lions 2026
How is the relationship between brands and people changing, why do consumers increasingly trust real experiences, and what role does technology play in the fashion and beauty industry?
In this blog, Mariam Bebiashvili, founder of minds&marketing and a brand strategist, shares her insights from Cannes Lions 2026. This year, she covered the festival with official media accreditation in partnership with Dressup.ge, exploring the campaigns, ideas and trends shaping the present and future of the global creative industry.
When a Brand Listens to Its Consumers
Among the work presented at Cannes Lions 2026, the campaigns that stood out most were those in which brands spoke less about themselves and gave more space to the consumer’s voice.
One such example was Vaseline Originals. Over the course of 20 years, the brand studied the different ways consumers had discovered to use its product, turned the best ideas into real products, and introduced their creators as the faces and partners of the campaign.
Through this approach, Vaseline showed that listening to consumers means more than simply understanding their opinions. Consumer experience can also become part of product creation, brand development and communication.
Dove’s campaign r/eal Reviews was equally compelling. Rather than focusing on well-known content creators and influencers, the brand put everyday consumers at the centre. Dove gave one of its products to Reddit users to test and pledged in advance to publish the first 50 reviews exactly as they were, whether positive or negative.
As a result, real reviews from Reddit users appeared on billboards, social media and in videos. They included sharply critical feedback as well as comments expressing genuine enthusiasm for the product.
Both campaigns point to a trend that festival speakers also discussed extensively: people are placing less trust in perfectly packaged corporate messages and relying more on the experiences of real people.
For a modern brand, the main question is no longer only how to speak to consumers. It is equally important to consider how to encourage them to share their own experiences and want to talk about the brand.
Artificial Intelligence for Better Experiences
In the fashion and beauty industry, artificial intelligence is already part of everyday workflows. In the most interesting cases, however, it is used for more than creating visual or written content. Its primary purpose is to simplify the consumer experience and tailor it to individual needs.
L’Oréal’s ModiFace is a strong example. Using a camera, consumers can virtually try on makeup, receive an assessment of their skin condition and get personalised recommendations. As a result, making a purchase decision online becomes easier and more informed.
Artificial intelligence also plays an especially important role in research and strategy development. The collaboration between Estée Lauder and Meta demonstrated how technology can process large volumes of information, identify specific criteria and uncover connections between different factors.
AI analysed Estée Lauder’s 80-year archive, examining how the meaning of the brand had changed over time and what patterns lay behind its success. The resulting insights then became the foundation for developing a new strategy.
This is particularly important for fashion and beauty brands. The value of technology becomes clearest when it helps people discover their own style, choose products and receive a more personalised experience.
More Than an Idea: Campaigns That Create Real Impact
One of the most emotionally powerful works presented at the festival was Bullet Machine, created through a collaboration between the Mexican newspaper La Unión Newspaper and the press freedom organisation ARTICLE 19.
The campaign highlights the very real threat of violence against journalists and shows that such violence does not affect journalists alone. Their family members are also placed at risk, while professional work can come at the cost of a life.
Another important observation concerned the winners of the festival’s top awards. Success is no longer determined by a strong idea alone. Increasingly, what matters is the real change a campaign is capable of creating.
One example is Haven, which won the Titanium Lions. Australian insurance company Suncorp created a digital platform that analyses weather, environmental and other data to alert users immediately to potential risks and provide practical recommendations for preventing damage.
In this case, the brand does more than talk about a problem. It gives people a practical tool and creates a tangible impact on their everyday lives.
Self-Expression as a Defining Theme of Cannes Lions 2026
For Mariam Bebiashvili, one of the defining words of this year’s Cannes Lions was self-expression.
Festival participants expressed themselves in different ways. For some, it was through their national flag; for others, through the brand they represented; and for many, through clothing and personal style.
Clothing was an important part of this experience. It did more than create a visual image; it also became a way of expressing a person’s character, mood and individuality.
It was also striking how the festival environment constantly encouraged participants to reveal more of themselves. In the spaces created by brands, the main focus was not on the product. Instead, they aimed to help visitors feel more connected to themselves, their interests and their potential.
This approach brought different roles and possibilities to life for Mariam: creator, analyst and simply a person who brings together new knowledge and impressions in one space and shares them with others.
One of the key lessons of Cannes Lions 2026 is this: a brand becomes more engaging, relatable and trustworthy when it places people and their experiences—not itself—at the centre.
Today’s consumer needs more than a product. They want to see themselves reflected in their choices, become part of the experience and turn their relationship with a brand into another opportunity for self-expression.