Johannes C. Bauer

Johannes C. Bauer heads the think tank of the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute (GDI) in Rüschlikon and sits on its executive board. He took over research leadership in 2022 from Karin Frick. His work looks at how consumer and purchasing behaviour is changing, at the future of retail in light of long-term trends in consumers, technology and business models, and at the opportunities and risks of digitalisation.

Before joining GDI he was a marketing professor at New York University and taught and researched at the University of St. Gallen. His research, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation, combined marketing, social psychology and behavioural economics and dealt with customer experience in retail and with how consumers perceive prices and promotions. He also worked as a strategy consultant for retail and consumer goods companies in sports, fashion and food.

Bauer earned his doctorate in marketing and consumer behaviour at the University of St. Gallen. GDI studies from his time there include Smart and Human (2025) and Decoding Food Culture (2024).