New study cracks the code to millennials’ luxury purchasing

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