South Africa, Sept. 9 -- Every brand claims to be consumer-centric.

Which is interesting, because somewhere between the annual strategy session, the competitor tracker, the brand health dashboard, and the fifteenth internal alignment meeting, the consumer often seems to disappear.

Not intentionally. Just quietly.

The conversation shifts. The focus moves inward. Teams become consumed with market share, category movements, operational pressures, and what competitors are doing next.

Meanwhile, the people they're trying to serve carry on living their lives. And that's where the opportunity gets lost.

While there's nothing wrong with complex frameworks, the answer to the biggest growth opportunities are often hiding in plain sight, inside...