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Everyone in consumer brands felt pay jump in 2022 and 2023. The question is what kind of jump it was. Our placement data says it was a catch-up, not a breakaway. Pay at placement rose about as fast as the cost of living, after a decade in which it barely moved.
The wages vs inflation debate usually runs on national averages. We can run it on something more specific: the base, target bonus and sign-on terms of 1,335 placements Protis Global closed for consumer brands since 2007, compared like for like by level. This is the second finding in The Price of Talent 2026.
Nominal pay by era, like for like
Median first-year cash at placement, by level, for the 2019 to 2022 era and the 2023 to 2026 era:
Manager: $130,000 to $137,500, up 6 percent
Senior Manager: $150,000 to $168,000, up 12 percent
Director: $187,500 to $221,875, up 18 percent
Vice President: $265,500 to $302,875, up 14 percent
Consumer prices (CPI-U, placement-weighted): up 17 percent
Director pay at placement rose 18 percent. Consumer prices rose 17 percent over the same span. VP pay rose 14 percent, Senior Manager 12 percent, Manager 6 percent. The market repriced once, and it repriced to roughly where inflation had moved the cost of living.
In real dollars, a Director is cheaper than before 2013
Adjust every placement to 2025 dollars and the long view is striking. The median Director placement was worth $267,000 in 2007 to 2012, $224,000 in 2019 to 2022, and $219,000 in 2023 to 2026. In nominal terms, Directors have never cost more. In real terms, they cost less than they did before 2013.
Two forces explain the pattern. A decade of flat nominal pay met 2021 to 2023 inflation, and the market caught up. At the same time our client mix shifted toward growth brands, which pay more of the package in equity that placement data cannot see. Both can be true. The practical result is the same either way: budgets calibrated before 2023 clear fewer finalists.
What it means for 2027 comp bands
If your bands were last benchmarked before 2023, they are 14 to 18 percent light at the Director and VP level. That is not a runaway market. It is a market that moved once while your bands did not. The fix is a one-time reset, not an annual chase.
For retention, the math runs the other way. A Director whose pay was set before the catch-up is one phone call away from an 18 percent market raise. Add the 50 percent step to VP that a challenger brand can offer, and the counter-offer you would need gets expensive fast. Price retention before the call comes.
Frequently asked questions
Has CPG pay outpaced inflation since 2022?
Not at placement. Director cash at placement rose 18 percent from the 2019 to 2022 era to the 2023 to 2026 era, against a 17 percent rise in consumer prices. VP pay rose 14 percent, below inflation.
Why does pay look flat in real terms if nominal pay is at a record?
Because nominal pay barely moved from 2008 to 2018 while prices rose. The 2022 to 2023 jump recovered the lost ground. In 2025 dollars, a Director placement is worth $219,000 today against $267,000 in 2007 to 2012.
How often should comp bands be benchmarked?
Against closed offers, at least every two years, and immediately if your last benchmark predates 2023. The 2022 to 2023 catch-up moved Director and VP bands by 14 to 18 percent.
The full report, The Price of Talent 2026, is free to download at protisglobal.com/price-of-talent-2026. If you want the analysis run against your org chart, your offer, or your next search, talk to our team.
