Slowly but surely, as we emerge from the pandemic there is no doubt that consumers will return to want new experiences and will be more open to experimentation. Sauces, spreads, dips, and marinades are some of the best categories to bridge the gap from comfort to innovation and from ubiquity to uniqueness.
The inevitable transition from comfort to experimentation will be gradual for most consumers. There will not be a switch that, from one day to the next, signals the shift to a more open mindset when it comes to food. There is no doubt many consumers have missed restaurant-driven experiences, with restaurants serving as the best driver for experimentation. However, retail product manufacturers have gone a long way to create at-home solutions that replace (to some degree or another) those restaurant experiences.