Cost-of-living pressures are not reserved for cash-strapped families. It appears luxury-purchasing Gen Z and Millennial shoppers are now even more discerning, “prioritising quality and sustainability” in their high-end choices, new research shows.
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For these consumers, “luxury goes beyond the product – it also means a buying experience that is seamless and secure”, according to research from European banking platform Tink centred on over 2,000 UK consumers and over 500 UK high-end merchants.
The report says Millennials, “many now in their peak earning years, and Gen Z, an emerging spending powerhouse”, are driving a shift toward ‘accessible luxury’ – prioritising quality, sustainability and secure, seamless shopping experiences”.
Its data shows the two age groups are purchasing the largest share of luxury items — averaging 16 and 14 items a year, respectively — “representing a significant market opportunity for high-end merchants”.
But currently 62% of luxury Gen Z and 68% of Millennial shoppers surveyed “are hesitant to make high-value online purchases due to fears of payment failure and fraud”. Tink’s data shows in these groups who shop for high-ticket and luxury goods, payment security is a top concern for a respective 58% and 64%.
The research also shows a respective 36% and 42% want a payment method with no hidden fees, while 34% and 38% demand one that minimises fraud. And this apprehension translates into hesitation, with over half (56%) and (52%) reluctant to make high-value online purchases due to a fear of payment failure and fraud.
And in a competitive market, secure and flexible payment solutions offer merchants “an edge”, with 68% of high-end merchants surveyed planning payment upgrades this year. Alongside those demands are a “streamlined payments experience [as] a critical element of the shopping journey”. In response, 85% of merchants surveyed are now focused on delivering a seamless and secure payment experience, it says.
Meanwhile, these consumers are also becoming more discerning with their purchases, opting for products that combine quality with ethical production. Key drivers for purchase include 73% of Millennials and 64% of Gen Zers surveyed wanting to invest more in quality purchases that will last. Sustainability also plays a key role in decision making, with 63% of Gen Z and Millennials (62%) willing to pay more for ethically made items.
Three-quarters of both, (76% and 75%), are also willing to pay more for the reputation of the brand, “reflecting the importance of trust – particularly in areas like payment security – in their purchasing decisions”.
Lucy Grant, Tink commercial strategy director, said: “Understanding the evolving preferences of Gen Z and Millennial shoppers is key for merchants looking to stay ahead in the high ticket and luxury market. These high-value customers demand more than just a premium product.
“Trust and brand reputation have never been more important for consumers when parting with their hard-earned cash, so it’s essential that merchants give shoppers peace of mind when it comes to making high-value purchases.”
Beauty consumers prefer shopping in-store for cosmetics, demand for international beauty products is surging, and 39% of parents have taken skincare advice from their children. These are a sample of findings from retail giant Boots’ latest annual Beauty Trends Report.
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The trends “set to shape the industry in 2025 and beyond” and taken from over 16.9 million active Boots Advantage Card customers, combined with 1,300 of its specialist in-house expert trend analysis reveal six themes “set to take the beauty industry by storm in the year ahead”. They include:
Under the heading ‘URL to IRL: Beauty without borders’, the report says digitally native beauty brands are quickly gaining viral fame online and making their way to high street stores at unprecedented speed.
Demand for international beauty products is surging, with one Korean skincare product selling every 30 seconds at Boots, and it now represents over 10% of the retailer’s ‘Everyday Skincare’ category’s sales.
Although social media platforms remain popular for product discovery, 94% of beauty consumers prefer shopping in-store for cosmetics.
The ‘Intergenerational Beauty’ category shows a flow of beauty advice reversing with 39% of parents having taken skincare advice from their children. Spending over eight hours a day online, Gen ‘Zalpha’ is “shaping industry trends and influencing purchasing decisions beyond their generational bounds”.
Meanwhile, more men are exploring the beauty category, with a 14% increase in men shopping for beauty products at Boots in the last year alone, the report says.
Under the ‘Science of Slumber: Beauty Sleep Elevated’ header, tiredness is ranking as the highest factor for negatively impacting skin and consumers are investing in their night-time routine to unlock their skin’s full potential.
Driven by trends like #morningshed and #sleepmaxxing on TikTok, consumers are seeking beauty hacks and wellness practices to optimise their beauty sleep. And its No7 brand scientists and the University of Manchester have discovered novel insights into skin cell rhythms at night, emphasising the importance of supporting skin during sleep.
Under the ‘High/Low Beauty’ banner, it says shoppers are investing in classic, luxury staples while simultaneously experimenting with fleeting trends and affordable brands.
More than a third of Boots Advantage Card members shopped both budget-friendly make-up and premium cosmetics in 2024, with a 14% year-on-year increase in premium beauty sales at its stores. Consumers are also seeking budget-friendly beauty to help their money stretch further, with one product from Boots’ own-brand skincare range selling every two seconds.
‘Moonscapsing: Scent as Self-Care’ shows fragrance “is becoming a powerful tool for self-care, mood enhancement and an expression of identity”. The survey reveals 78% of UK consumers believe that fragrance can improve mental wellbeing, highlighting the growing awareness of the mind-body connection. Boots Advantage Card data also reveals 42% of shoppers bought more than one type of fragrance in a year, as opposed to opting for just one signature scent.
Finally under ‘Enter the Health Hackers’, the healthcare and aesthetics industries are merging, with Med Spa-inspired technologies and ‘prejuvenation’ practices influencing beauty routines. Some 78% of consumers believe prevention is better than cure and are actively seeking to improve their health.
And there’s an increasing demand for advanced beauty devices led to a 536% spike in sales of LED masks at Boots in 2024.
Premium formalwear brand LK Bennett has posted a loss with its accounts for the year to last January. The London-based womenswear, footwear and accessories retailer said in a Companies House accounts filing that it made a pre-tax loss of £3.1 million in the 12 months compared to a pre-tax profit of £2.3 million in the previous period.
LK Bennett
We don’t yet know any details of how it’s fared since then with its accounts filing for its next financial year not likely to come until later this year or early next.
The company swinging to a pre-tax loss came as it also saw revenue falling to £42.1 million from £48.7 million during the year. The gross margin also fell quite sharply from 61.9% in the previous financial period 254.9% this time. The net loss for the year was £3.5 million after a net profit of £1.8 million in the previous year.
It said it was affected by the tough economic climate in the UK as well as global events that added to inflation and the overall cost-of-living crisis.
While it operates stores in mainland Europe and Ireland, the UK is an important part of the company’s business both for its physical stores and it’s online store and it added that it’s important that it “reacts to the marketplace and relevant changes in consumer spending as rapidly as possible”.
What that meant was an intention post period end “to review customer requirements and ensure the product range matches these expectations”. In practice that has included adding relevant new categories and adding to its size range.
At the time, the directors also added that they were remain confident about the businesses ability to react positively to the challenges out there.
UK online spending rose 2.9% year on year to hit £8.1 billion in January, according to new data from Adobe Analytics. It followed annual growth of 19.9% in December, although this was impacted by Cyber Monday falling in December 2024 against November 2023.
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Overall, spend increased 5.9% during the whole festive period and with the almost-3% January rise, Adobe said it indicated “continued consumer confidence and online spending power following 2024’s record holiday spending period”.
So what were people buying last month? Health & wellbeing were key, we’re told.
“Shoppers looking to start the year well, focused their spending [here]”, Adobe explained. “Consumers browsed online to upgrade their home gym, with online purchases of exercise equipment rising by 60% when compared with the previous month. Health and nutrition were top of mind, as online spending on natural supplements including multivitamin powders and pills increased by 26% and fruits and vegetables by 24%”.
Consumers also enjoyed discount deals across categories including apparel (-5.2%), sporting goods (-1.9%), furniture (-2.9%), and appliances (-1.2%), “as retailers kept prices competitive to stimulate demand after record spending between November [and] December”.
But while they may have been spending freely, shoppers were also still reliant on buy now, pay later (BNPL) services to boost their spending capabilities. In January, £1.26 billion was spent via BNPL, accounting for 15% of total January spend, and up 3.3% compared to January 2024.
Vivek Pandya, lead analyst, Adobe Digital Insights at Adobe commented: “After indulging in deep online discounts during the holiday season, shoppers kicked off 2025 by putting their money where their health is and spending on items to boost their wellness and fitness. Consumers also took advantage of continued discounting in January with online retailers dropping the prices of apparel, sporting goods, furniture and appliances in an effort to avoid a post-Christmas spending hangover.”
The Adobe Digital Insights team used Adobe Analytics to analyse hundreds-of-millions of visits to retail sites from UK consumers in January 2025, tracking 100 million stock-keeping units (SKUs) across 18 product categories.
Entertainment8 years ago