Gen Z has not yet entered the universe.
Financial experts claim that these youthful shoppers have helped malls recover from the pandemic, in part because Gen Z has been transformed into a generation that craves instant gratification as a result of the digital space’s decline. The urgency of touching, testing, and purchasing may be what draws people to natural businesses.
Stephanie Tully, a professor at USC Marshall School of Business, said,” This digitally savvy technology is used to having things they can download, admittance, and watch right away.” Therefore, the desire to purchase physical goods soon makes sense and may explain interest in brick-and-mortar, in that context.”
Gen Z — people from the age of 16 to 26 — prefer in- man as much as virtual searching, if not more, according to a 2023 , report , by the International Council of Shopping Centers. According to the business class, approximately 97 % of survey respondents said they buy at masonry- and- mortar stores, 95 % said they shop online for the pleasure.
Gen Z consumers are reviving the experience of a store store, according to Kristin Grove, senior vice president of national financial rent at JLL, a global real estate company. ” They want a sense of community. They want to bridge the gap between the interpersonal press that they’re doing, and join and buy in- person”.
The trade group’s study did n’t inquire about other generations ‘ shopping habits. However, according to a report released in 2022 by the marketing firm CM Group, then Marigold, and the financial consulting firm F’inn, 47 % of Gen Z responders said they prefer to store in person over online, more than any other era.
” Despite being the first online native generation, nearly all Gen Z customers shop in- store and prefer bodily retail at similar rates to previous generations”, Ali Esmaeilzadeh, executive vice president at Brookfield Properties, said about shoppers at that company’s Glendale Galleria.
There is good reason for malls to bank on Gen Z, which makes up , 40 % of global consumers , with spending power clocking in at ,$ 360 billion.
For 23- year- old Nicole Tan of West Hollywood, online shopping is for browsing while in- person shopping is for buying.
As a song from the K-pop group New Jeans played in the background at the Westfield Century City shopping center, she said,” I like to try things on.” ” If I see ads on social media and there are sales online, I’d maybe buy stuff online, but I usually like to shop in- store”.
Shopping centers have long been the lifeblood of malls, with movies like” Fast Times at Ridgemont High” and” Clueless” showcasing the fervor and activity in them. But the popularity of online shopping and recent economic turmoil took a toll, with many retail centers either closing altogether, being converted into office space or , apartments , or taking on unconventional tenants such , as grocery stores.
Some malls have been revived by targeting teenagers and young shoppers who want more than just a place to spend money: a place to hang out, dine, and meet friends. With the easing of pandemic restraints and the slowing of e-commerce, some malls have been resurrected.
And then there is the , loneliness factor.
” There’s a lot of data showing that Gen Z is a particularly lonely generation and that it needs more social interactions”, Tully said. “[Gen Z ] would benefit from going out and having those experiences in-person probably more than other generations.”
According to the survey conducted by the International Council of Shopping Centers, 60 % of Gen Z respondents said they prefer to spend money on experiences over tangible goods. As a result, retailers are first to consider how to improve the in-person shopping experience.
In addition to other major Southern California malls, Westfield Century City and South Coast Plaza, among others, are focused on maximising “hang time,” or how much time customers spend there.
She said,” It typically combines great food and beverages with opportunities to fulfill [daily needs],” adding that it is typically a combination of both. ” You’re multitasking and doing some other things, not just shopping”.
Louis Schillace, senior general manager of Westfield Century City, said that in addition to shopping outlets, the mall houses a gym, an escape room, movie theaters and fine dining restaurants — keys to attracting diverse visitors.
When you consider Gen Z and how they use the space, he said, it gives them another chance to pick this location for a night out.
Tan, who works at a talent agency across the street from Westfield Century City, said she frequently visits there to grab dinner with a coworker or go for a walk.
” I do more leisure non- shopping things at the mall”, she said.
According to the ICSS report, about 70 % of Gen Z survey respondents reported that retail locations and stores were enjoyable places to gather.
According to a 2023 Coresight Research report, the successful malls have the financial resources to reinvest in and renovate their spaces in order to meet the changing needs of today’s shoppers. And malls are suffering because of it, according to experts.
Shuttered stores populate the , Puente Hills Mall, best known as the Twin Pines Mall from the 1985 movie” Back to the Future”, in the San Gabriel Valley. And the University of California recently announced plans to , acquire , the former Westside Pavilion, once a popular L. A. mall that was later converted to office space.
Tully predicted that as online retailers offer shipping, delivery, and return options that might discourage people from visiting malls to shop, Gen Z flocks will become more important for their survival.
She said,” There might be drones that will fly things to us.” Who knows what will change with AI? But one thing you will not be able to have ]delivered ] are those]in- person ] types of experiences”.
According to Grove, successful shopping centers also need to attract the types of trendy brands that Gen Z shoppers are likely to support as well as socially and environmentally conscious retail locations.
Gentle Monster, a South Korean brand of sunglasses that gained Gen Z’s attention in recent years with collaborations with likes of K-pop star Jennie of Blackpink, opened a store at South Coast Plaza in late 2022.
In September 2023, hundreds of people flocked to the Westfield Century City opening of Australia’s first physical store, Princess Polly, a fast fashion brand well-liked by Gen Z and millennials.
” When we open a store like Princess Polly and we see the reaction, it was clearly generational”, Schillace said. ” When we saw the lines of 500 Gen Z- ers waiting for the doors to open, the connection was there”.
According to the ICSS report, more than half of Gen Z survey respondents said they were interested in supporting brands that prioritized mental health. About 47 % of respondents said they were interested in brands that promote racial and gender equality and sustainability.
” I try to shop small, independent brands or brands in line with my ethos”, Tan said.
Brands such as , Victoria’s Secret , and , Abercrombie and Fitch , went through highly publicized reckonings over body and racial inclusivity in the 2010s as maturing Gen Z students watched from their various social media platforms. As these legacy brands undergo major rebranding to appeal to the new generation of shoppers, those preaching body positivity and diversity such as , Fenty Beauty, American Eagle Outfitters Inc. ‘s , Aerie , brand and Skims have found commercial success.
” I think that’s all attributable to a really educated new generational shopper”, Grove said. ” That’s the future”.
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