Explorer Research has offices in Toronto and Chicago, where it offers in-lab experiential research to support its wider full-service shopper insights offer. 

In London, the agency is setting up similar facilities for experiential research. For the foreseeable future the immersive lab experience will be based at Savanta’s London office on Great Portland Street.

Explorer Research specialises in path-to-purchase, planogram, packaging and shopper experience research. Savanta acquired the company in late 2023, with the union offering Savanta clients access to in-person, online and virtual reality shopper research services.

The expanded offer will build on Savanta’s existing shopper capabilities in the UK, including retail environment design and behavioural and media optimisation.

Graeme Cade, executive director, UK at Savanta, said: “Our collaboration has already supported lots of opportunities for new business that builds on our existing shopper capabilities, and we expect this to be an increasingly bullish sector as the UK economy gets back to growth.” 

Mike Moussallem, president at Explorer Research, said: “Since our partnership began with Savanta, we’ve seen the huge opportunities for our business outside of the US and Canada, and in particular in the United Kingdom, where so many major FMCG and retail companies are based.”