People Blog:
The fashion industry is known to be eurocentric and ethnocentric, therefore lacking diversity. Meaning that there are a lot of demographics and minatory groups that find themselves unrepresented. It does not help when some brands use monocultural marketing, historically aimed at one specific demographic (the dominant one: white, European, young and skinny).
Recently, the fashion industry has strived to redemption in the field by making the former unrepresented groups represented. For example, PLT supports diversity by advertising their #everyBODYinPLT. This hashtag is inclusive as it supports body positivity, racial equality, LGBTQ rights, female empowerment and diversity in the workplace; as an umbrella term; the brand wants to be welcome to anyone and everyone regardless of their religion, race, gender, sexual orientation etc.
GenZ is a young person born between 1997 and 2010. They are the generation known for bringing about change and speaking up in times of injustice through actions such as protests and social media posts. Social media and the internet have become popular and highly used by GenZ as they have grown up alongside it. It has now become second nature and a massive part of their lives.
For a brand to attract GenZ as a consumer it must have good ethics/corporate responsibility. GenZ believes in social causes. They tend to be informed consumers and often research and weigh up options before making a buying decision. They tend to be much less attached to specific brands, preferring to shop around for the best deal. Despite being the most online generation, GenZ likes shopping in-store. They also like having real shop assistants to help them with queries. GenZ has high expectations, both in terms of customer service and product quality. They like individualised shopping experiences that can be tailored to their personal preferences. A survey conducted by IBM found that product choice, availability, convenience and value are the top influencing factors for GenZ when choosing shopping channels.
For a fashion brand to be successful today it needs to acquire people skills including good communication and negotiation skills, technology skills (web-savvy), and a good understanding of business, creativity and innovation. In order to keep GenZ engaged and to keep up with the ever-changing pace and trends of the fashion industry.
Social media has contributed to more change and diversity due to the the larger target audience. This means that more inclusive media campaigns can be shared internationally faster and by people of any demographic, meaning the number of potential sales is higher.
References-
Bewicke, H. (2021). Gen Z Consumer Behavior: What You Need to Know | Talon.One. [online] www.talon.one. Available at: https://www.talon.one/blog/gen-z-consumer-behavior-what-you-need-to-know.
James Hillman Fashion Consultancy. (n.d.). The Fashion Entrepreneur Skills You Need in
2022. [online] Available at: https://www.jameshillman.co.uk/blog/2021/1/24/the-fashion-entrepreneur-skills-you-need-in-2022 [Accessed 16 Oct. 2022].
Lamb, J. (2018). 13 Ways to Target Generation Z. [online] Zazzle Media. Available at: https://www.zazzlemedia.co.uk/blog/target-generation-z/#gref.
www.prettylittlething.com. (n.d.). Diversity | PrettyLittleThing. [online] Available at: https://www.prettylittlething.com/diversity.