Decentralising Retail

As digital natives,Gen Z is switching up new retail behaviours online and challenging the idea of what a retailer does and who a retailer is. Online retail is getting more and more saturated, so brands and Gen Z themselves are leaning into creativity and remodelling retail strategies that excite and engage this digital first generation. A few examples of decentralised digital retail are as follows -

WhatsApp Catalogs: Convenient Retail

In a study by Udaya, WhatsApp surfaced as the most popularly used app amongst the Gen Z across all urban and rural areas. With WhatsApp sharing and forwarding feature, and creation of catalogs that can be easily viewed and purchased from, the WhatApp Business provides a parallel, more local network-based retail space to those not on platforms like Instagram. Sienna Store and Cafe, Calcutta’s popular cafe stayed in touch with their customers all through the lockdown.

Dance sells: Playing to Trends

Gen Z wants to be making money doing the things they love. They want brands to inspire them before selling to them. Entertaining content on Instagram reels and Tik Tok videos double up as sponsored ads for everything from sarees, shoes to hoodies. EthnicCo is a saree brand enlisting groups of women dancers to dance wearing their sarees in synchronised choreography.

Thrift Stores Going Once, Going Twice: Shared Social Responsibility

A latest fad amongst a more global sustainability conscious GenZ has been to shop thrifted items via Instagram store drops and auctions where one is expected to book and pay for the piece as soon as the image is uploaded at an announced time. New ways of selling exclusivity and gamifying the process have found different expressions within Gen Z sellers and buyers.

K-shopping

Hyper connected, this generation lives online alongside digital natives from other cultures and heritage. There has always been cross pollination between the west and the east, but lately Indians are beginning to build an appetite for consuming East Asian content and one can see a mushrooming of shows, shops and collaborations. This foreign culture influence hasn’t played out in the traditional way, birthing in urban cities and trickling down to smaller towns but instead its influence is much more spread out. An interesting case study is Korea.

A growing number of Indian Gen Z refer to themselves as ‘Koreaboos’—one who is obsessed with Korean culture—South Korean music, K-shows, K-beauty products, even the language and food. This phenomenon first caught on in North Eastern India when the government imposed a ban on the consumption of Indian entertainment content in 2000 so North Easterners looked further East for such content. . Because Korean shows are not too sexual in content, and they believe in family values – this resonates with the viewers of India, including those in Tier 2, Tier 3 cities. The Korean Culture Centre India organises a KPop contest every year and in 2020, 1,952 teams and 3,475 participants participated in the K-pop contest all over India with regional rounds held in Guntur, Bhopal and Dehradun for the first time.

Where will GenZ invest?

Ed-tech and Skills

For the Indian Gen Z, education, skills and training is a top spending priority as only 3% of the youth have formal skill training. Gen Z is looking for a range of content from digestible inspiration to in-depth tutorials which will help them regularly upskill, be resourceful and help them do something meaningful. The IT sector will continue to boom as digital and remote work and learning, 5G infrastructures and vernacular tools will continue to proliferate to keep competition alive and the markets ripe.

Health and Fitness

With a sensitivity towards the planet and its people, Gen Z is seeking life with better breathing air and a holistic approach to wellness. Mental health is a real issue amongst the tech addict youth. Inevitably the need for phygital mental health resources is in urgent demand. To meet their health goals, Gen Z will not stick to any one fitness regime, instead they will try a variety of things. Mass celebrity brands such as Xrong by Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli and HRX by actor Hritik Roshan are reportedly amongst the best performing brands on fashion retail platform Myntra.

Alt- news

On the internet, one is privy to misinformation easily. Combatively there has been a rise in independent news outlets that practice transparent, fact checking protocols. Google News has a ‘Fast Check Tag’ to help test the claims of an article. Facebook etc. are employing fact checking integrations like Snopes and Politifact to flag fake news. With so many people expressing opinions online Gen Z consults multiple sources and reads up multiple perspectives to form their own opinions.

NewsLaundry’s podcast NL Hafta, is a weekly paid podcast where expert panelists discuss current affairs, a format for those who prefer news in audio. Splainer, a newsletter with an all women’s team looks to provide a female lens on storytelling, an otherwise very gendered space in India. Faye D’Souza posts headlines and breaking news on Instagram through posts and carousels for those looking for digestible information.

SmartTech

Gen Z’s digital nativism means smart technology will be a must for this generation’s future homes. Voice technology and AI will play a central role and smart speakers will become the “brains” of Gen Z homes since they offer futuristic qualities at a relatively affordable price. The pandemic has conditioned GenZ to spend more time at home, as such, they will be inclined to spend money on in-home entertainment and innovative, unique products that enable them to have personalised experiences at home.

EVehicles

The government of India has approved infrastructure for 69,000 charging stations to be set up by the year 2026. Key players like Bajaj, Mahindra and Hero are leading the electric revolution in India. By the time Gen Z will have relevant income to spend on automobiles, EV infrastructure will have been well established in India. GenZers in the West are already beginning to put money in eco-conscious purchases, and relevant infrastructure and resources in the near future will aid Indian Gen Z to do the same.

Banking

Gen Z is smarter with their financial spending and investing habits. A growing number of youth are putting their money in bitcoins and virtual currency or choosing clever hassle free ways of investing. An example of this is SmallCase—a portfolio of stocks weighted intelligently and put together by financial experts to track a particular theme (EV/ banking/ IT and so on) so you can simply invest in the theme you believe has future potential, not specific stocks.

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