Economic problems and difficulties in saving, but also an eye to sustainability: this is how Gen Z spends

The 848 thousand shoppers of the Z generation, The born between 1997 and 2012, they shop less per year (on average 150 times, against a national frequency of 198) containing the value of the receipt Even more than the other buyers (21 euros against 22), testifying to a great attention to the wallet. Although it is not a high-sepending audience and easy to read due to a more complex lifestyle that prefers consumption away from home, operators look with great interest in this band that now overlooks the market and which anticipates the trends of the immediate future. They are attentive to their appearance, physical well -being and entertainment. Spa & restaurants are higher than the national average, but also sportsmen.

Who are the new consumers

Research Gen Z & Health, how the shopping cart changes of YouGov, who is based on the shopper panel of 15,000 families representative of the totality of the Italian families of Yougov, leader of the market in the world’s research on the world of consumer, photographed the main features and habits of the generation Z. The scenarios that emerge – presented during the Talk Gen Z&HELTH – how the shopping cart created by the Food Group changes during the TuttoFood Milan – they appear unpublished especially in the field financial managementcharacterized by the frequent use of mobile banking (4 or more times a week for 34% of young people, against 28% of the older generations), online transactions by credit card (39% vs. 30%) or payments in the store via app (22% vs. 13%). Discontinuity too As for leisure, with gaming and travel to impose themselves as favorite occupations: almost two out of five young people (38%) travel for leisure at least two-three times a year although they try to cope with a limited budget in more than one in two cases (55%), while one in five (18%) dedicates video games more than 7 hours a week, using video games also to socialize (31%).

53% declare themselves responsible for purchase of financial products (an index far more than 18% total of the same age) and 46% prefer to have more than one bank account (against 31% overall). Elements of insecurity instead appear from the indicators related to socialitywith 55% of the purchasing managers who prefer activities to be carried out in solitude (against 48% of their peers), 54% entertain guests in their own home (vs. 47%) while 49% of them indicate the perfect evening that between the home (43%).

Self -referentiality?

Generation Z declares itself particularly attentive to its physical appearance. The index is statistically 16% higher than the target target. This range of population is more used to playing sports oa frequent spa. A hedonistic approach that is also declined in going to restaurants (compared to the total, the Gen Z index is higher than the average of 35%) and cinema (+26%), and in preparing desserts such as hobbies (+15%) and which, at the time of purchases, inevitably translates to prefer peculiar characteristics and compartments of consumer consumer: attention to the well-being of your body determines the best performance for high-professional products and those for personal care, with indexes higher than average by 41% and 24% respectively.

Environment

Gen Z is open to experimentation, social equity and the environment. Compared to the older shoppers, those of the latest generation prefer ethnic foods (an average of+28%compared to the total), products with green (+24%) or fair-suolidal (+22%) packaging or new (+20%) or organic choices (+16%). Other important factors for purchases are considered the service and comfort, which they direct towards fast proposals to prepare or greedy delicacies in the name of indulgence.

The purchase managers of the Gen Z spend more than double the national average in Energy Drink (223%), the far more performing category followed by ethnic specialties (147%), Cole (144%), breakfast cereals (143%) and ready -made sauces (141%). Personal care proves to be a decidedly primary concern compared to that of the house: if compared with the total of the shoprs, four of the five categories at the top of the expenditure of the Z generation for relative value are the internal absorbents (271%), the balms for the hair (192%), the solar creams (146%) and deodorants for the person (143%).

Europe?

The attitudes of young Italians fit into the wider scenario that emerges from the WhitePaper Young Shoppers in FMCG: What’s the Deal? Made by Yougov on the basis of the data collected in 21 European countries. From a social point of view, the Z generation has suffered most of all due to Covid’s pandemic, continuing to grow in a condition of permanent crisis due to factors such as economic insecurity, the pressure on public and pension -based health systems, the increase in natural disasters and the climatic crisis that are influencing the mental state of young people: A third of the Z generation in Europe considers mental health problems as one of the main concernslevels never seen in other generations. Only 61% of Under 34 say they feel mentally well, compared to 76% of the over 55.

Common to many young Europeans is a routine attentive to personal well -beingwhich provides for regular exercise and a poor diet of sugars, fats and processed foods. If we take the German one as a reference market, for example, the so-called “Health-Actives” of Gen Z show a consumption index of 355% of protein foods of 253% of gluten-free products. In Germany, the growth of healthy segments highlights a higher performance.

The relationship with brands

Consumers of the Z generation must manage a restricted budget, however more than half of young buyers throughout Europe feel reassured by the brands and would prefer to buy branded products (52%) – the highest percentage of all generations – proving more inclined to pay a higher price (46%, compared to 27%of boomers). At the same time, however, having to manage the lack of spending capacity, the majority of the Gen Z (56%) makes a clear distinction between private products Labels and brands. When it comes to daily needs such as personal care and daily food (for example breakfast cereals), young buyers tend to “go down in category” and buy private brand products more often.

Health is the area where brands have seized the opportunity to grow and fight against private brand: in 2024 compared to total growth of the brands of 3.3%, in the health segment the increase is 9.3%. To intercept the European public of the future, it is necessary to deal with online media, where it is extremely receptive: 65% of the Gen Z spend more than an hour a day and 25% would like to buy FMCG products on social media. Only 27% of this audience declare that they do not buy widely consumer genres, a similar percentage (23%) of those who already use flash delivery: still a confirmation of how the younger generations are guided by comfort in their purchase decisions.