“It takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place.”
This quote is from the Red Queen to Alice in Lewis Carroll’s Through the Looking-Glass (1871). Alice realises that if she stops running, she’ll fall behind. This is a single quote that has had a profound effect.
This literary metaphor was adapted by biologist Leigh Van Valen in 1973 to describe a hypothesis about species survival. Van Valen proposed that organisms must constantly evolve to survive in an environment where other species are also adapting. If a species stops improving, say, a prey animal doesn’t get faster, its predators, who are evolving to become better hunters, will outpace it, leading to extinction. His analysis of fossil records showed that species survival times were relatively constant, suggesting a relentless evolutionary arms race. He called this the “Red Queen Hypothesis,” implying that adaptation is a zero-sum game: you evolve just to maintain your relative fitness, not necessarily to “win.”
The concept has since been applied beyond biology to fields like economics, technology and marketing. In marketing, The Red Queen Effect captures the dynamic where brands must continuously innovate with new campaigns, better targeting and fresher messaging, not to dominate but to avoid being overtaken by competitors who are also advancing. For instance, think of how fast-food chains like McDonald’s and Burger King rapidly copy each other’s menu innovations (plant-based burgers, spicy nuggets) to stay relevant. Or Apple, constantly moving factories to avoid risk or issuing phones more often to battle competitors from China. Standing still means falling behind.
Retail competition can sometimes feel like a relentless race, and many businesses struggle to gain an edge. However, it's not about running harder, it’s about running smarter.
“If you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that.”
-The Red Queen, Through the Looking Glass (1871)
The Red Queen’s advice is flawed! Sometimes, you just need to step off the treadmill altogether and build a strategy that will always outpace the competition. Try playing a different game and targeting a consumer base that often goes under the radar – the homemover. Targeting those moving home is often a blind spot that retailers overlook. And considering how much this audience spends on retail goods and services (£29 billion annually), it would be a serious strategic mistake to overlook them.
Consumers don’t just select brands based on price and speed, they also choose based on emotional connection and trust. A home move is a major life event, and if your brand is visible during a homemover’s time of need, that emotional connection can be extremely impactful.
Stop being distracted by watching what your competitors are doing and instead watch your customers. Focus on solving consumer pain points because when businesses prioritise customer experience over market trends, they build loyalty. Understanding the frustrations and stress of a home move and offering solutions is a winning formula. Getting in front of this high-spending audience is a winning formula. Doing so before your competitors is a winning formula!
The Red Queen Effect also highlights the need to allocate your resources efficiently. Prioritise the strategies that will return you the best investment. Darting from one shiny new object to the next is short-term thinking. Our analysts prove time and time again that homemovers spend more with retailers than non-homemovers. That’s your return on investment banked.
“I could have done it in a much more complicated way,” said the Red Queen, immensely proud.
-The Red Queen, Through the Looking Glass (1871)
Again, the Red Queen misses the mark! Sometimes you don’t need complicated solutions to get ahead. Are you adapting and evolving to remain relevant in the market? Or simply following stale strategies or copying competitors?
TwentyCi's homemover data and homemover marketing can help you find purchase-ready buyers with ready-to-buy intent. Let’s work together to connect your brand with high-spending homemovers.