Gen Z and millennial shoppers have aspirational beauty tastes, according to a new co-created report from Base Beauty Creative Agency and Mintel, whether or not these consumers are actually rich. This has significant implications for beauty R&D/product development and marketing.
Per the report, 65% of U.S. consumers believe that luxury products/services impress others, particularly as social media has made luxury products and lifestyles more visible than ever before.
It's no surprise, then, that 59% of 29-43-year-olds value showing off their financial status through their lifestyle.
Aspirational Beauty Dupes
Zillennials (the micro generation at the older/younger ranges of Gen Z and millennials, respectively) are financially savvy, as we reported in Global Cosmetic Industry's recent generational beauty report.
As a result of this financial focus, 42% of surveyed consumers seek less expensive alternatives to high-end products.
For those who are not rich but aspire to live a more luxurious lifestyle (or are just choosy with their spending), Gen Z and millennial beauty shoppers will pursue dupes. In fact, per the report, 64% of Gen Z and 67% of millennials use product dupes to save money, per the Base Beauty Creative Agency x Mintel report.
In fact, one in three beauty shoppers have actually purchased makeup dupes seen on social media.
Across all categories, 59% of millennials are more likely to buy products sponsored by content creators they follow, while 48% of Gen Z shoppers have made purchases based on influencer recommendations.
As previously reported, fragrance dupes continue to be a Gen Z favorite. A recent Circana analysis noted that scent dupes offer a similar fragrance experience as a luxury or niche brand, but at a fraction of the cost. These lower cost alternatives are more visible and discoverable than ever, thanks to #PerfumeTok and high Gen Z engagement in the fragrance category.
Gen Z is reportedly "twice as likely to be influenced to purchase a scent that is a dupe or inspired by a more expensive scent," per the Circana analysts, in part because these shoppers believe that lower cost fragrances can be just as good as their more premium counterparts.
In 2024, the dupe culture trend is a "bright spot in the mass fragrance market," with private label brands growing more than 50% year-over-year. Many are marketed as equivalents to luxury and prestige brands.
Dupes have become so mainstream that even retailers like Walgreens have introduced openly dupe-focused beauty collections.
The Financial Implications of Aspirational Beauty
Despite the prominence of lower-cost options such as dupes, 22% of millennials have gone into debt for impulse purchases across categories.
In fact, 33% of surveyed consumers regret overspending on beauty; this skyrockets to 52% for Gen Z and 40% for millennials.
