Fandom is no longer a niche but rather seen as culture with 3 in 5 Australians consider themselves fans of something and spending more than $500 annually on fan-related purchases.
Snack Drawer has released a new report – Fandomination!: A Brand Growth Playbook in a Culture-Driven World – examining how fandoms are reshaping marketing, culture and consumer behaviour in 2025.
The agency identified fandom as a potent, underutilised force for brands seeking to build true cultural relevance, in an age where passive impressions are losing their power, with 70% of media investment reportedly wasted on attention that doesn’t last beyond two seconds.
“Fandoms aren’t a niche, private pursuit anymore – they are culture, ” said Hannah McElhinney, Chief Creator and Co-Founder at Snack Drawer.
“Brands that invest in building and sustaining the fandoms around their brand will win against the tide of attention decay, deepen their engagement and see an uptick in spend, while brands that continue to push content one-dimensionally will be left shouting into the void.”
Based on a nationally representative YouGov survey of 2,000 Australians, the research finds fandom is now mainstream, with 57% of Australians identifying as fans, and 32% saying their fandom forms a significant part of their identity, influencing style, conversations and daily decisions. Among Gen Z, that number rises to 75%.
The report found 66% of Australians believe brands should participate in fandoms, but only if they add real value – 20% have stopped supporting a brand because they felt the brand took advantage of the fandom and exploited fans for profit.
“Fandoms are living ecosystems, bound together by a shared passion for a creator, brand or cultural property,” says McElhinney.
“What sets fans apart from passive consumers is their deep emotional investment; they engage, connect, and build community, even in the absence of new content or brand involvement. Sneakerheads don’t need Nike’s permission to gather and Swifties don’t wait for an album drop to obsess and connect. ”
The report also found that fandoms fuel active attention with 75% of fans engaging on social media and over 50% through personal style and online communities.
Nearly half of Gen Z said in the survey that they’ll buy from a beloved brand even when they don’t need the product. Meanwhile, passionate fans will critique the brand and 60% of fans critique brands while remaining a fan.
The report also noted that fandom spans far beyond entertainment, with Australians identifying as fans across a wide range of categories: 76% are into entertainment, 48% sports, 38% food, 38% tech, 35% fashion and beauty, 29% cars and lifestyle, and 28% consumer goods.
Central to the playbook is Snack Drawer’s Fandom Tornado, a strategic model mapping fan behaviour into five tiers — from passive observers to core identity fans. This layered framework helps marketers identify how fans interact with their brand and how to deepen engagement over time.
Like a supercell storm, the most loyal and creative fans sit closest to the centre, generating memes, fan art, commentary and critique. Snack Drawer encourages brands to embrace this energy, rather than control it to help brands activate and grow their own fandoms.
Jamie Searle, CEO and Co-Founder of Snack Drawer, says fandoms are the future of brand-building, and the brands that get it right will own the next decade.
“Fandom is identity, belonging and emotional investment – everything brands need but can’t achieve through advertising alone. As media fragments and audiences scatter, fandom gives brands a way to anchor themselves to something meaningful – a shared passion people rally behind.
“Fandom gives brands across all industries a new path to relevance and loyalty. Brands that nurture fandoms now will earn loyalty that lasts far beyond the next campaign cycle.”
Top image: Jamie Searle and Hannah McElhinney