For several years now, we have been observing a phenomenon that we provisionally call the Epicurean Turn. At first, it was visible in specific areas: gastronomy, hospitality, wellness, and the communication of premium brands. Today, however, it is increasingly spreading across further categories and becoming a broader cultural code. It is changing the way consumers think about pleasure, quality of life, responsibility and good choice.
Over the past few years, popular culture has readily turned to Stoicism. We have been learning resilience, self-control, productivity and how to remain calm in a world of constant uncertainty. It was a philosophy well suited to a time of crises, information overload and the feeling that one simply had to “somehow cope”.
Today, however, the shift of the cultural pendulum is becoming increasingly visible. After years of optimisation, minimalism and living in task mode, there is a growing need to reclaim pleasure. Not pleasure understood as mindless excess, but a calmer, more qualitative, sensual pleasure, embedded in everyday life.
For brands, this is an important developmental signal. The Epicurean Turn opens up space for new narratives, products and experiences: those that combine comfort with responsibility, sensuality with moderation, wellbeing with pleasure, and quality of life with quality of choice.
Contrary to common associations, Epicureanism did not mean indulgence or luxurious consumption. In its classical sense, it was rather about tranquillity, freedom from fear, absence of pain, moderation, friendship and the ability to enjoy simple things. This is precisely why this figure is returning so effectively to culture today: it allows us to talk about pleasure without excess, ostentation or guilt.
Epicurean lifestyle: everyday life as a source of pleasure
“Epicurean lifestyle” marks a shift from the question “how can I be more efficient?” to “how can I live in a way that genuinely feels good?”. It is a lifestyle based on simple rituals: a calm meal, conversation, rest, contact with the body, friendship and a pleasant environment.
Within this code, the classical Epicurean sources of happiness are important: tranquillity, freedom from fear and the absence of bodily discomfort. This is an interesting counterpoint to contemporary wellness, which often itself becomes yet another project of optimisation.
Epicurean experience: travel, food and the luxury of immersion
“Epicurean experience” aptly describes a shift in tourism, gastronomy and the experience economy. It is no longer about ticking places off a list, but about immersion: in taste, landscape, locality and atmosphere.
Hence the growing role of slow travel, boutique hotels, local cuisine, tastings, farm-to-table, thermal spas and intimate retreats. Luxury here is not defined by excess, but by the quality of time and the intensity of experience.
Neo-hedonism: pleasure after the age of renunciation
Neo-hedonism shows that the contemporary turn towards pleasure is not a simple return to consumerist hedonism. Pleasure is filtered through new values: health, quality, ethics, authenticity and responsibility.
In gastronomy, this means conscious menus, local ingredients, smaller portions, plant-based options, and low-ABV and no-ABV drinks. In beauty, it means clean beauty, personalisation and wellbeing. In fashion, it means greater expression after years of cool minimalism, increasingly combined with sustainable production.
Sustainable hedonism: good does not have to mean giving things up
“Sustainable hedonism” is an important shift in the way we talk about ecology and responsibility. A sustainable choice does not have to be communicated as renunciation. It can be pleasurable, comfortable and attractive.
This is a shift from the language of “you must limit yourself” to the language of “you can live better”. An ecological hotel does not have to be austere. A plant-based restaurant does not have to talk about absence, but about taste. Responsible fashion can tell a story not only about ethics, but also about beauty, durability and the pleasure of wearing.
Neo Dolce Vita: the return of sensuality and celebration
Neo Dolce Vita is one of the most visible cultural signs of the Epicurean Turn. It evokes images of living here and now: conversations at the table, evenings with friends, food, sunshine, laughter, style and slowness.
It is also a reaction to the “clean”, “minimal” and “barely there” aesthetics that dominated for several years. After a period of visual sterility, the desire for colour, texture, scent, taste, glamour and expression is returning.
Healthy hedonism: pleasure that supports wellbeing
Healthy hedonism brings together two orders that for a long time seemed contradictory: health and hedonism. It shows that healthy living does not have to be ascetic or based on discipline.
This can be seen in the popularity of mindful drinking, non-alcoholic drinks, functional drinks, quality food, rituals of regeneration, sleep and gentler forms of movement. It is a transition from “I have to be healthy” to “I want to feel good”.
Epicurean marketing: less quantity, more satisfaction
Epicurean marketing is based on a simple premise: pleasure does not increase linearly with quantity. A larger portion does not always bring greater satisfaction. Often it is the description, context, aroma, texture, first bite and way of serving that build the greatest intensity of experience.
That is why Epicurean marketing does not encourage “more”, but “better”. This is particularly useful for food brands, gastronomy, premium, wellness and sensory communication.
What does the Epicurean Turn mean for brands?
The Epicurean Turn shows that consumers increasingly do not want to choose between responsibility and pleasure. They expect brands that can combine quality of life and quality of choice, sensuality and ethics, wellbeing and taste, comfort and awareness.
For communication, this means a change of language. A tone of pressure is becoming less effective: “you must”, “achieve”, “optimise”, “improve yourself”. The language of invitation has growing potential: “pause”, “feel”, “try”, “celebrate”, “choose better”.
Visually, this code works through warmth, light, materiality and closeness: hands, a table, fabrics, food, glass, plants, interiors, landscape, natural imperfections. Less laboratory cleanliness, more life.
The Epicurean Turn therefore does not mean a simple return to hedonism. It means a change in the definition of pleasure. Pleasure no longer has to mean excess. It can mean tranquillity, presence, relationships, quality and responsible choice.
After the age of optimisation comes a time for pleasure that requires no justification.