IRL or Online: Where Gen Z Is Really Shopping

Gen Z shops everywhere and in every way—including many who still shop in person…

  • From resale apps to livestream sales, Gen Z is spreading their spending across more shopping channels than gens before them
  • Despite headlines about declining in-person traffic, plenty of Gen Z prefer to shop IRL, especially for clothes, shoes, and beauty items
  • Young adults are frequent mobile shoppers, especially with social and livestream shopping
Gen Z shops in more places—and in more ways—than any generation before them. They’re just as comfortable snagging something from a resale app, tuning into a livestream sale, or using TikTok Shop as they are buying from a traditional retailer. They’ll often mix and match touchpoints for one purchase: checking reviews on social, browsing in-store, and finally hitting “buy” on an app. As a result, many one-time “it” brands that relied on a single platform have started to fade into the background. Stories about big retailers and malls losing foot traffic keep making headlines, and Gen Z is often blamed for these changes. But with Gen Z spreading their spending across so many different channels, it raises the question: where do they really shop?   In YPulse’s Shopping and Retail survey, we ask 13-39-year-olds about their shopping habits online and in-store. From a list of 10 options, we asked young people to choose how they regularly make purchases, including shopping at physical stores, browsing a brand’s website, or buying through...

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