Millennial women spend $401 per year on women’s clothing, while Gen X and Baby Boomer women spend $300 a year, according to research conducted by the marketing agency Barkley U.S. and the Boston Consulting Group. (For more on shopping trends, see related stories on pages 2 and 6.)
Women’s shopping habits and preferences differ by age. Millennial women are more likely to shop in groups, while older women are more likely to shop with only their children. Millennials women are also more likely than their older counterparts to shop at least weekly (13% vs. 6%).
Women’s retail environment preferences also vary by age. Gen X and Baby Boomer women are more likely than Millennial women to prefer to shop for apparel in open-air shopping malls and at airports. Conversely, Millennial women are more likely than older women to prefer destination outlet centers.
What Women Want
Millennial women want a “fun, energizing” in-store experience with trendy music, unique product offerings, and a large variety of accessories to complete their outfits. Older women prefer quiet, low-key shopping environments.
“Millennial women want a store experience that involves sales associates who are helpful, friendly, and fashionable. Who wear the store’s fashions and know the product line well,” says Barkley’s Jeff Fromm. “[The Millennial shopper is] looking for a trusted advisor who will make recommendations and offer opinions about how the fashions look when she tries them on.” Older women, comparatively, prefer to be left alone when trying on items and seek opinions of friends.
Store Preferences
Women stick to retailers that cater to their generation. Boomer women shop most frequently at Chico’s, Christopher Creek, and Coldwater Creek. Millennial women shop most often at Victoria’s Secret, T.J. Maxx, and Target.
Millennial women say Target and Old Navy reflect their personalities and lifestyles the most, while older women claim Kohl’s and Walmart best suit their personalities.
When asked where they would shop more frequently if they could, Millennial women list higher-end retailers, such as Nordstrom and Anthropologie. Older women, on the other hand, list mid- or low-tier retailers including Walmart, JCPenney, and Kohl’s, with the addition of upscale department store Neiman Marcus.
What This Means
One size does not fit all when it comes to women purchasing apparel, and retailers need to adjust their approaches to accommodate generational differences, says Fromm. Millennial women’s frequency of shopping and willingness to spend on apparel makes them an important target.
Retailers should consider wider aisles when catering to Millennial women, since they prefer to shop with others. Store layout should facilitate Millennials’ tendency to send their shopping partners to find alternative sizes for the person in the dressing room. An overlooked factor in Millennial shopping behavior is their need to seek their friends’ input on their outfits, and the fact that shopping buddies may be of the opposite sex. The vast majority of retailers currently only enable other women to enter dressing rooms, making it difficult (or impossible) for women to get their male friends or boyfriends to weigh in on their purchase decisions.
Despite the youngest generation’s digital connectedness, Millennial women are more likely than older women to shop in stores rather than online. Older women, for their part, are more likely than Millennial women to shop via the Home Shopping Network and at catalog-only retailers.
Contacts and Connections: Barkley US, Jeff Fromm, EVP, 1740 Main St., Kansas City, MO 64108; 816-423-6195; jfromm@barkleyus.com; www.barkleyus.com.
Boston Consulting Group, Eric Gregoire, Exchange Pl., 31st Fl., Boston, MA 02109; 617-850-3783; gregoire.greg@bcg.com; www.bcg.com.
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