Still in Lockdown 2.0, Black Friday and Cyber Monday this year may be a glimpse into the future spending habits of Generation Z, with a faster shift from in-store to online shopping. From our annual kids and youth tracker at Discovery, we have found that many of Generation Z’s values can influence their shopping habits, as demonstrated in this year’s Black Friday.
As mentioned in last week’s blog post, finding ethically/environmentally sourced products plays a bigger role in Generation Z’s consumer decisions than any other generation. With their overall increased climate awareness impacting many aspects of their life, it is no surprise that their shopping habits are affected. Pretty Little Thing’s Black Friday promotion, where clothes were being sold for as little as 8p has caused outrage amongst many due to their treatment of workers in Leicester factories. There has already been a huge backlash on social media, with many calling for the brand to be boycotted.
While being able to get good value for their money is something that is vastly important for Generation Z, there is a line whereby other values begin to supersede their desire for savings. Many retailers had voiced concerns over the potential lack of spending this Black Friday, and a report by YPulse showed that 48% of young consumers planned to shop on Black Friday compared to 60% in 2019. So it begs the question, what can retailers do to combat the lack of footfall in shops during lockdown?
As the most digitally available generation, Gen Z want everything on their phone whenever, wherever – something which retailers have had to consider for this particular Black Friday. But it is clear that Gen Z also value a “unique shopping experience”. Retailers must find a way to ensure consumers shopping online still get that excitement they would in store for Black Friday, otherwise they risk missing out year on year.
If you’re interested in exploring further the values that younger people represent, drop Afra and Helen a line at afra@discoveryres.co.uk / helen@discoveryres.co.uk