- During the coronavirus pandemic, fashion brands' main exposure to customers has been through the internet — and a rise in e-commerce could remain as part of any "new normal."
- The marketing expert Sarah Weise says brands have an opportunity to endear themselves to young people who make up Generation Z during a tough time — but can easily get it wrong.
- Some fashion brands are trying to appeal to Gen Zers' interest in causes like sustainability, with the French company Ba&sh even encouraging resale of its products.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, experts and observers have predicted there will be some type of "new normal" on the other side.
Exactly how that will look is unclear, but an undeniable trend so far is the acceleration around e-commerce.
For fashion brands trying to reach the lucrative Generation Z market, which is on course to be the largest consumer population in the next decade, that particular trend, along with a few others, is something they would or should have been pivoting to for some time.
Gen Zers, generally defined as anyone born from 1995 to 2012, are digital natives. They are coming of age with access to an advanced internet-based global marketplace for products and services, and many are thinking about being entrepreneurs themselves or have parents nudging them in that direction.
At a time when conversations about climate change and racism are at the forefront, they also have an innate sense of social justice.
You might say it is Gen Z's world and brands are just living in it. So what does that world look like right now?
Sarah Weise, a marketing expert who wrote "InstaBrain: The New Rules for Marketing to Generation Z," says Gen Zers are "grieving."
Coronavirus-related lockdowns have put an abrupt end to their college, work, and social life as they know it. As retailers and restaurants remain shut, summer job prospects are bleak.
Big corporations are anticipating an economic future in which the customer or client is cutting back, and many are realizing the budget isn't there to take on interns or graduates.
Given that Gen Zers are productive by nature — used to managing four screens at a time — having their life and career on hold is difficult for them to process but is a huge selling opportunity for brands. "Brands that take account of how Generation Z are feeling right now will win support for life, and those that get it wrong will know it — instantly and publicly on social media," Weise told Insider.
She added: "Fashion brands should be aware of how Generation Z is feeling right now and connect with them in a meaningful way, using products to lift their spirits. A luxury brand can create a story around a handbag — there is a certain comfort in having a physical item that reminds you of happier times."
COVID-19 has forced fashion brands in particular to make their website and social channels the shop window for now. Nielsen research has found that Gen Zers are 59% more likely than the general population to connect with brands on social.
This picture seems evident in the lastest numbers from Depop, the UK-based online-reselling platform, most popular with 18- to 25-year-olds. Sales for March and April were up 100% from the same months last year, and item listings were up 150%.
The basic function is to connect buyers and sellers, but by using hashtags, tagging brands, and even profiling entrepreneurial sellers, it creates community and conversation around the shopping experience, and, ultimately, Gen Zers want connection.
"They are also anti fast fashion," Marie Petrovicka, the vice president for international at Depop, told Insider, adding that brands should reconsider "constantly churning out new collections, because younger people will remember this and associate them when adding to the huge pile of fashion waste."
Ba&sh, the French label 50% owned by LVMH, has gone a step further to connect with the Gen Z market and its sustainability values.
It describes itself as the first brand in the world to have a resale button embedded into its website. The feature, introduced in April, was in the works before the pandemic.
The idea is that buyers are linked to Ba&sh items that are for sale across numerous platforms, rather than having to trawl through sites. It also helps the Ba&sh design team to see what styles are going in and out of favor.
Rather than seeing reselling as a threat, Pierre-Arnaud Grenade, the CEO of Ba&sh, has said the secondhand market "can have a fantastic impact and addresses the sustainability problems in our industry."
Such messages are likely to appeal to Gen Z. Brands certainly hope so.
"These kids really care about the world," Petrovicka said.
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