Next Gen luxury marketing and the undeniable pull of ‘interestingness’
Gen Z is set to spend on luxury goods at a rate three times faster than other generations. This new generation of luxury consumers has entered adulthood, and social media and influencers have made it easier to discover and fall in love with luxury brands. In an industry that’s having a tough time, this is a great opportunity. But it also comes with a challenge. Because Gen Z doesn’t watch ads; they watch what interests them.
Luxury brands must work harder to capture and hold the attention of a generation that’s chronically online and rejects boring ads. Ads that are beautiful but vanilla, won’t make an impact. Spamming with the same content over and over neither. Interestingness is the only mind-control technique that works.
To be interesting, be interested
Being interesting starts with being interested. Zoomers spend a quarter of their day on content. Luxury brands need to create content they want to see, listen to, and interact with. Content that grabs and keeps their attention because it’s unusual, exciting, or surprising. That turns heads and stops thumbs, and lingers in the mind even once it has disappeared.
The absurdity trend
Absurdity is the latest weapon in the battle for young adults’ attention. It’s unpredictable, unhinged, often humorous, and thus interesting. Mass-market Gen Z darlings like Duolingo, Surreal, and Liquid Death are going all in on it. Luxury brands like Marc Jacobs, Balenciaga, and Jacquemus do an amazing job balancing lo-fi absurd content with high-quality content to still reflect the style and exclusivity that define luxury.
But going absurd isn’t the solution for every luxury brand that wants to get on the radar of the new generation. Authenticity remains key. If it doesn’t fit the brand’s values and story, then it isn’t for that brand. Jaguar’s latest campaign made this clear. The brand abandoned all it stood for and jumped headfirst on to the crazy train.
Interestingness is the key
Luckily, there’s something any luxury brand can (and should) do to be interesting: see their values and story as a canvas for exploration. And within this canvas, continue to surprise and reinvent. Interesting people usually have an adventurous, independent mind. The same goes for interesting luxury brands. Leave it to mass market brands to run after the same trends. Exclusivity should not only be in the price of luxury brands’ goods, but also in the originality of their ideas.
Fresh insights and executions is what will turn luxury brands into Gen Z attention magnets. The key to connect with this new generation of luxury buyers lies in embracing interestingness - a concept that taps into authenticity, surprise, and genuine connection.
By Marieke Dekker, Head of Strategy SuperHeroes The Drum - January 8, 2025