Billions of people are entering the consumer class
For most of human history, nearly everyone lived in poverty.
Rarely did households have anything left over after covering necessary expenses. Many did not know whether there would be enough food for the next day or whether their shelter would survive the winter. This defined the human experience. Even up through the year 1900, economists estimate 95% of the world were poor and vulnerable.
Over the past century, that reality has changed rapidly.
Global economists define a household as “middle class” when it has economic agency—enough financial resources for necessities and the ability to make discretionary spending choices. Economists are now referring to this as the consumer class.
In 1900, this segment represented 5% of the world’s population. By 2010, it was nearly 30%. In September 2018, more than 50% of the world was in the consumer class. (Source: Homi Kharas, Brookings Institution)
Billions of new consumers now have the economic power to make discretionary choices. They can buy a refrigerator that preserves food. They can afford a motorcycle that reaches jobs farther from home. They can save for their child's education. And they can give to churches and charities.
Technology is breaking down barriers that previously prevented people in developing regions from accessing global labor markets. And AI is unlocking new, competitive capabilities for people in developing countries.
Earlier this year, I used Upwork to engage Malti, an experienced e-book designer in India, who completed the project with excellence at an affordable rate. Upwork managed the production process and payment across borders. Malti accessed a global marketplace that was not available to her just ten years ago.
A new generation is growing up to be AI-fluent, allowing them to engage the world with few barriers. Global platforms will continue to improve, and money will flow directly from developed economies to developing ones.
Jobs create income. Income creates stability. Stability creates choice. And choice changes everything.
The biggest economic shift of this century is already underway. Brookings projects consumer-class spending will grow from $44 trillion in 2020 to $64 trillion by 2030, with two-thirds of those consumers in Asia. As the middle of the century approaches, the African people will become both the workers and consumers of the future.
When people move from poverty into the consumer class, a new mindset begins to set in. Economic choices are driven by human values and desires, such as status, comfort, pleasure, and purpose. Billions of people are learning for the first time what it means to make financial choices.
For business leaders, the opportunity is clear. How are you leveraging the potential of the global consumer class, both as an expanded workforce and as potential customers of the future? Businesses focused exclusively on North American or European markets will miss the majority of global growth. What initial steps can you take today to learn how to engage a worldwide market?
From a Kingdom perspective, the expanding consumer class provides an opportunity both to share the Gospel and to disciple new believers in stewardship.
“But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth” (Deuteronomy 8:18). That verse was written to a people crossing from scarcity into abundance. It was a reminder that prosperity is entrusted.
Christ-centered stewardship is not automatic. It must be taught, modeled, encouraged, and affirmed. The habits people form in these years, toward generosity or toward accumulation, will shape churches, communities, and nations for the rest of the century.
The consumer class is not just a market segment, it is the engine of global transformation. And its values will shape what kind of world we become.
