The Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions (NIM) is an independent and interdisciplinary research institute. Using data-driven methods, we investigate how people make decisions in markets: from prices and information to technological developments, as well as emotions, habits, and context. We place a particular focus on consumer sentiment and consumption as a shaping force in the economy. Building on scientific excellence, we formulate concrete recommendations to help policymakers, businesses, and society make better decisions in order to achieve "prosperity for all".
As a nonprofit organization, we fund our research through our own resources.
The Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions is the founder of GfK.
Our Commitees
Three committees are steering the activities and orientation of the Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions:
General Assembly
The General Assembly is the highest committee of the NIM and meets once per year. It elects the members of the Executive Board and the Members’ Council. The actions of those sitting on the Members’ Council and the Executive Board are ratified on an annual basis.
Executive Board
The Executive Board has included personalities from business and science since it was founded. They are elected by the members of NIM for five years at a time. As the Executive Board, the commitee manages the institute and its day-to-day business. This includes the tasks as a shareholder of NielsenIQ, but also setting the right priorities for projects and research topics of the Institute.
Our current Executive Board:
![[Translate to English:]](/fileadmin/PUBLIC/1_NIM_NIM/GREMIEN/Martin_Goluecke_sw_quadrat.jpg "[Translate to English:]")
Members' Council
The Membersʼ Council consists of at least four and at most ten members, who are elected by the General Assembly for a period of five years. Members of the Membersʼ Council are individuals who have experience in business management. The Membersʼ Council advises the Executive Board on exercising its rights and protecting the interests resulting from the investment in NielsenIQ. It is also responsible for granting approvals for business transactions or decisions of the Executive Board, insofar as this is provided for in the Articles of Association of the organization or the bylaws of the Executive Board.
The current Members' Council:
Our History
The Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions (NIM) has been operating under this name since 2018. However, its historical roots go back much further. NIM was founded in 1934 under the name Gesellschaft für Konsumforschung e.V., or GfK for short. The founding fathers Prof Dr Wilhelm Vershofen, Dr Erich Schäfer and Prof Dr Ludwig Erhard pursued the goal of ‘making the voice of the consumer heard’, as the scientist and author Vershofen put it in a nutshell.
Wilhelm Vershofen's innovative, pioneering concepts at the time, such as analysing the idea of benefit, his transaction model underlying the purchase decision or understanding the visible market decision based on the - initially invisible - attitude and habits of consumers, are still highly topical today and continue to accompany the research work of NIM.
More about our history:
Team
As a think tank for market research, NIM relies on the innovativeness and commitment of its team. Its employees are characterized by diverse qualifications and specialist knowledge.
Read moreArticles of Association
The fundamentals of our activities are set forth in our Articles of association.
Read moreMembership
Market research in Germany began with our foundation in 1934. Today, the Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions e.V. has around 400 members.
Read moreAnnual Reports
You can find our Annual Reports here, detailing our activities, projects and financial figures for the past 12 months.
Read more