The centre will develop new consumer research and serve as a forum for business executives and academics to discuss their findings. It will carry out two or three “high quality” projects a year.

David Thomas (pictured), dean of the McDonough School of Business, said: “The institute will add to the transformational educational experience we provide our students by exposing them to real-world problems faced by marketing professionals and the solutions generated by our research.”

KPMG principal Alton Adams added: “Complexities around new technology-driven areas such as social media and the cloud, along with a general lack of fact-based research, have created a thirst for consumer behaviour insight. The Institute aims to satisfy this demand by producing unique research that carries both an academic and a business world stamp.”