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New study cracks the code to millennials’ luxury purchasing

By Robyn Turk

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Fashion

Finally—the answers we’ve been looking for. Streetwear blog Highsnobiety figured out how millennial and Gen Z shoppers purchase luxury, and how streetwear has infiltrated the luxury fashion landscape. Forty-five percent of the luxury market’s consumers is set to be made up of millennials and Gen Z by 2020, so it’s time we get some insights.

In its first-ever whitepaper, Highsnobiety took a survey of over 7,000 millennial consumers globally to learn about what it defines as the “New Luxury.”

"New Luxury" is all about knowledge

The New Luxury, as Highsnobiety describes it, is the current consumer landscape defined by a merge of creativity and commerce, communities brought together by shared ideas and a dedication to authenticity of the self. “‘New Luxury’ isn’t just about what you wear, but also what you know,” the whitepaper report reads.

Highsnobiety question 4,984 consumers between the ages of 16 and 34 globally, and a comparison group of 2,379 consumers in its core market of “early adopters and fashion conscious individuals” of the same age group within the U.S. and UK. In asking questions like “which brands are capturing youth culture,” and “why are mass consumers willing to pay a premium to feel included in the cultural conversation,” the study gained insight into the New Luxury mindset and determined the correlation between individuality and luxury purchases.

Luxury goods don’t hold their value through exclusivity or monetary cost anymore. Only six percent of survey participants purchase luxury products to directly express wealth. Rather, the ideals that their clothes represent are of equal importance to the item’s quality. Eighty-five percent of consumers purchase luxury fashion because of the ideas expressed by the item.

The choices these consumers make are more about identifying with the brand or designer than a concern of the item’s history, imagery, exclusivity, or display of wealth. Only about half of consumers in each group surveyed believe that luxury item is a better quality than the affordable alternative. These consumers value authenticity above quality.

And as previous studies have concluded, younger shoppers are willing to spend more money on a brand if that brand shares similar beliefs. Of the survey group within Highsnobiety’s target consumer base, 87 percent reported that the would spend more money on a brand that supports causes they believe in. And conversely, more than have of these consumers have boycotted brands due to the causes the brands support.

“Instead of merely buying a product, the young luxury consumer is buying into a lifestyle or community,” the report stated. It continued, “In some ways, ownership has become equal to participation.”

Photos courtesy of Nike

Highsnobiety
Luxury