Generation Z: Luxury’s Core Buyer
The Marketing Methods Catering to Luxury’s Most Sought After Target Market, Gen Z.
Gen Z is the next significant consumer cohort. As a population, the generation that started out in 1996 won’t peak for another ten years, but their influence today on older generations and general consumer behavior is unmissable. If they follow the same trajectory as previous generations, they’ll account for the dominant age group in luxury by 2040, as they’ll soon be approaching the beginning of their careers and purchasing lifecycles.
Luxury has always cultivated exclusivity and aspiration, but this new generation is engaged with diversity, inclusivity, connection, and emotional interactions. Gen Zers recognize their power as consumers and seek an ongoing conversation with the brands they support. Understanding who they are and what they’re looking for will be crucial for luxury brands, as it will force them to innovate and adapt their business models and value propositions.
Engaged by a Hybrid & Cross-Platform Experience
Gen Z expects a frictionless experience when shopping. They shop across all formats and experience brands at every moment, not just on their phone but on their laptops, on social media, at pop-up boutiques, at department stores. They don’t see the shopping experience as a single-way route but understand and make the most out of all the ways to access their desired items. They see a product online and try it on virtually with a filter on Instagram or Tik Tok, visit a physical store to see it and try it on in real life and buy it online once they’re ready.
Fluid shopping is a widespread expectation for Gen Z. Brands should be able to adapt and transform their customer experience, that’s moving beyond omnichannel and more towards omnipresence. Physical is still important for them, but retailers must not only invest in new digital capabilities but ensure there’s a true cohesion between online and offline while making sure they stay authentic to their story.
Fascinated by Uniqueness
While millennials have looked at luxury brands as a way to showcase status, Gen Z’s vision of luxury goes far beyond mere ostentation: they look for unique items that set them apart. Mixing items with different price points, thrifting, reworking pieces, supporting emerging or local brands… it’s all part of their striving for uncommonness. They’re willing to pay for it if they find it on a luxury brand. They’re very aware of the number of choices they have and where to look for them, and they will choose products and brands that fit their needs and serve this desire for uniqueness.
Guided by Ethics
Ethics play a significant role in their purchasing decisions. Their purchases are intentional and deliberate. Precisely because they understand the number of choices they have and their power as consumers, Gen Zers choose items and brands that meet them on their terms and search for them until they find them, without conforming with the first option they encounter.
Besides features and price, a brand’s mission and purpose are other factors influencing their purchase decisions, and they carefully consider whether a particular brand represents them enough before buying.
As Gen Z emerges over the coming years as a primary consumer, luxury brands will need to consider their needs and visions of consumption. This will imply an increased focus on how to engage this new demographic with new and changing demands and how to include fresh ways of doing business in their overall business model.
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