What Opinions does

Opinions, Ltd. is a family-owned market research company headquartered in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, founded in 1998 by Mark Kikel and his wife Laura Kikel. The company provides a full continuum of quantitative and qualitative market research services — including mall intercepts, central location testing, package testing, product testing, UX/CX testing, sensory research, focus group moderation, ethnographic research, in-depth interviews, online surveys, and fieldwork administration — to consumer brands (especially fast-moving consumer goods) and research agencies across verticals such as cosmetics and personal care, food and beverage, healthcare, automotive, and electronics. Its core technology is a proprietary market research data collection and analysis platform anchored by an organically grown participant database of more than 1 million consumers, accessed through the My Opinions Place panel portal, with traditional survey programming and data processing services executed in-house.

The company's competitive position rests on a physical distribution moat: 22+ company-owned and operated storefront-style testing facilities in high-traffic U.S. shopping centers plus an international facility in Croydon, London (operated through wholly-owned subsidiary UK Opinions Ltd), each equipped with focus group rooms, test kitchens, viewing areas, and call center stations. The company employs 251-500 people with an average of 15 years of marketing research experience on the corporate team, led by President Mark Kikel, Executive Vice President Chris Sluder, VP of Client Services Iris Blaine, and EMEA Sales Director Johnathan Sheldrake.

Go-to-market is enterprise sales-led: dedicated client services and field sales teams acquire B2B clients through direct outreach and quote-based engagement, supported by industry-association memberships (AMA, ESOMAR, QRCA, MRS, ASTC). Revenue is generated through project-based professional services engagements priced via quote rather than published tiers, with the company operating in 23 owned facilities across the U.S. and U.K. and maintaining CCPA and GDPR compliance.

Name

Opinions

Legal name

Opinions, Ltd.

Website

https://opinionsltd.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Opinions, Ltd. is a family-owned U.S. market research company operating 22+ owned mall-based testing facilities plus a London facility, providing quantitative and qualitative research services — mall intercepts, package testing, UX/CX, focus groups, and fieldwork — to consumer brands and research agencies across multiple verticals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Market Research Services

NAICS

Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (541910)

akta.pro primary industry

Survey, Panel & Fieldwork Services (BPAHALAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Market Research & Consumer Insights (BPAHALAA), Shopper Insights & Path-to-Purchase Research (MPAAAJAL)

Keywords

• Market research services
• Central location testing
• Mall intercept surveys
• Qualitative research
• Consumer panel research

Headquarters

HQ city

Chagrin Falls

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices25 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Market Research Services: Full-service market research including quantitative and qualitative research, central location testing, mall intercepts, focus groups, product testing, package testing, and UX/CX testing. Revenue generated through project-based professional services engagements with B2B clients.
2. Fieldwork Research Services: Data collection services completed in-house using streamlined protocols across all testing locations. Includes survey programming, data processing, and analysis deliverables.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Opinions, Ltd. is a full-service market research company that delivers quantitative and qualitative data collection and research services to consumer brands and research agencies. Operating 23 company-owned permanent testing facilities in U.S. shopping malls plus a London/Croydon UK location, the company executes mall intercepts, central location testing, package and product testing, sensory research, UX/CX testing, shopper experience studies, focus groups, ethnographic research, in-depth interviews, online surveys, and online bulletin boards, supported by an organically grown consumer panel exceeding one million participants and in-house survey programming, data processing, and analysis/reporting capabilities.

Product overview

Opinions LTD is a full-service market research company providing a continuum of data collection and research services. The company operates as a unified platform combining in-house capabilities including central location testing at 23 owned facilities across U.S. mall locations plus an international location in London, UK; participant recruiting through an organically grown consumer database; and comprehensive research methodologies spanning quantitative (mall intercepts, online surveys, sensory research, on-site intercepts) and qualitative (focus group moderation, ethnographic research, in-depth interviews, online bulletin boards) approaches. Additional services include package testing, product testing, UX/CX testing, shopper experience research, fieldwork administration, survey programming, and data analysis and reporting. The company uses streamlined protocols across all locations with consistent procedures, offering a single point of contact from project inception through delivery.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• My Opinions Place: Online research panel portal where participants create profiles and receive invitations to participate in studies

Products and services

• Central Location Testing Large group, multi-day consumer assessments conducted at company-owned and operated testing facilities in high-traffic shopping centers across the U.S., for consumer brands and research agencies.
• Mall Intercepts Consumer research recruitment and interviewing conducted at permanent facilities in high-traffic shopping centers across the U.S.
• Package Testing Testing and evaluation of product packaging design, materials, and consumer appeal for consumer brands.
• Product Testing Real-time consumer testing of products including new product development and product line extensions for consumer brands.
• Sensory Research Product evaluation across the five senses, typically conducted in test kitchens and dedicated facilities for F&B, personal care, and household product brands.
• On-Site Intercepts Staff-based research coverage in the top 50 cities in the United States for in-person consumer intercepts conducted by Opinions field staff.
• Online Surveys Programming, hosting, and execution of traditional online surveys and innovative survey formats for consumer brands and research agencies.
• Focus Group Moderation Expert moderator-led group discussions with client viewing, traditional and living room set-ups, and web-streaming capabilities for qualitative research projects.
• Ethnographic Market Research In-home or in-store ethnography research to understand consumer behavior in natural environments.
• In-depth Interview (IDI) One-on-one interviews conducted over phone or in-person for detailed qualitative insights.
• Online Bulletin Board Asynchronous research platform for focus groups or face-to-face IDIs that delivers efficiency and validity for qualitative research projects.
• UX Testing | CX Testing Customer and user experience evaluation using strategic research methodologies to capture real-life voice of customers for consumer brands and research agencies.
• Qualitative Research Research methods using consumer word choices, non-verbal behaviors, and body language to explore complex concepts and customer experiences.
• Shopper Experience Research In-store, on-shelf testing, and shopper lab research with interpretation of human factor data for retail and CPG clients.
• Fieldwork Research Research administration via central locations, at home, off-site, or online across multiple or single markets.
• Survey Programming Questionnaire design and development by an experienced programming team for complex surveys supporting research agencies and consumer brands.
• Data Processing Services Programming, coding, data processing, and cross-tabulation services for market research data.
• Research Analysis and Reporting Customized reporting including statistics, tabulations, transcripts, and full analysis to help clients understand their customers and derive actionable insights.
• Research Participant Recruiting Expertise in recruiting qualified, present, and articulate participants from an organically grown consumer database of 1M+ using targeted intercepts, snowballing, referrals, and in-community outreach.
• Owned Mall Testing Facility Network Network of 23 company-owned and operated permanent storefront testing facilities across U.S. shopping centers, plus one international location in London, UK (Croydon) opened in 2024, offering controlled environments with shelving, test kitchens, focus rooms, and shopper labs.

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• American Marketing Association (AMA)minorOthersProfessional industry membership organization for marketing professionals. Opinions LTD displays AMA logo on website indicating membership in the marketing research community.
• ESOMARminorOthersGlobal association for market, social and opinion research. Opinions LTD holds membership, demonstrating commitment to industry standards and professional ethics in market research.
• QRCA (Qualitative Research Consultants Association)minorOthersAssociation of qualitative research consultants. Membership indicates professional standing in the qualitative research community.
• MRS (Market Research Society)minorOthersUK-based market research society providing professional standards and guidelines. Opinions LTD maintains membership demonstrating international professional standards.
• ASTCminorOthersAssociation of Science and Technology Centers - partnership for research and testing capabilities.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Schlesinger Group: Major U.S.-headquartered provider of qualitative and quantitative fieldwork services combining owned focus group facilities, panels, and in-person recruitment — directly comparable to Opinions' mall-facility and panel-based model.
• Dynata: Large first-party data and panel-based research company operating a global consumer panel and survey programming services used by brand marketers — competing directly with Opinions' managed panel and data-collection offering.
• Toluna: Global consumer panel and online survey research provider with both digital panel assets and complementary fieldwork capabilities — directly overlapping with Opinions' managed-panel and survey-programming services.
• M/A/R/C Research: U.S.-based full-service market research firm offering quantitative and qualitative fieldwork, online and in-person data collection, and consumer insights — similar to Opinions in deliverable scope, panel models and focus on brand-side clients.
• CatalystMR: U.S. market research fieldwork company offering mall intercepts, focus groups, central location testing and recruiting — overlapping service mix, customer base (consumer brands and research agencies) and mid-size footprint.

Broad incumbents

• NielsenIQ: Global consumer measurement and shopper insights provider for FMCG brands — comparable on shopper experience, package/product testing and brand-side client base, but operating at a much larger scale.
• Ipsos: Global top-tier market research and consumer insights firm with a broader portfolio (advisory, brand tracking, public opinion) where Opinions' fieldwork, qualitative and quantitative capabilities sit inside a much wider service line.
• Kantar: Global insights and consulting firm serving brand marketers with consumer research and panel-based offerings — overlapping Opinions' consumer-brand fieldwork but at vastly greater scale and capability breadth.

Emerging players

• Prolific: Online participant recruitment and survey research platform serving academic and commercial researchers — an emerging, technology-led alternative to traditional fieldwork panel companies like Opinions.
• UserTesting: Tech-enabled human insights platform offering remote UX/CX testing via managed participant panels — directly substituting for Opinions' in-person UX/CX testing with a digital-first delivery model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/opinionsltd
• Facebookfacebook.com/opinionsltd
• Xx.com/opinions_ltd
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/opinions-ltd.

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Opinions