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Younger Generations Influencing Holiday Retail

As retailers turn their sights to the 2018 holiday shopping season, attracting the economy’s youngest customers is playing a bigger part in many retailers’ plans for marketing and in-store experiences, retail analyst Steven Barr writes in Forbes.

Data from PwC show millennials and Generation Z shoppers plan to spend the same or more as they did last holiday season. Overall, the data indicates 84 percent of holiday shoppers plan to spend the same or more than they did in 2017.

To best attract the youngest holiday shoppers, Barr recommends retailers do everything they can to provide a “seamless shopping experience.”

“[Younger customers] are likely to start their buying journey online, looking at images and reading content. They research, they go in store and they shop on the go,” Barr says.

Barr says that retailers are unlikely to change much before the holiday rush begins, but he urges them to stay mindful of overall retail trends.

He recommends retailers consider adding a “click-and-collect” process to quickly connect customers with their online orders. He also says retailers can post product photos to their social media accounts to encourage in-store conversions.

Barr says retailers who take the time to court millennials and Generation Z shoppers could benefit this holiday season and for years to come.

The Generation Z and millennial generations are nuanced and segmented, and certainly a one-size-fits-all strategy won’t fully capture this market,” Barr says. “But there are commonalities in their shopping habits, preferences and expectations that will lead astute retailers to drive a few new effective means of creating an omnichannel experience that really works for everyone.”

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