For many Gen Z, online shopping isn’t a mundane means to an end, it can be more about the journey than the destination. If you can imagine yourself carefully selecting an item, waiting for the delivery and having it arrive on your doorstep – this creates anticipation and excitement, it is an experience in itself.

This mentality opens the doors to an ecosystem of self expression and enhances ways that they can showcase their personality to the world. It facilitates their capabilities to discover, connect, and vibe with brands that reflect their identity.

In 2025, e-commerce is less about transactions, more about interactions and Gen Z? They’re not just changing the rules, they’re rewriting the whole playbook. (McKinsey)

Social Media Is the Storefront?

Shopping no longer extends to just a Google search, for Gen Z it’s also across the platforms they’re using; TikTok, Instagram.

These are now full-fledged shopping ecosystems, and TikTok is part fitting room, part review board, part checkout. For illustration the  #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt trend has over 80 billion views, driving viral products and impulse purchases. (Business Insider)

So for brands reading; do take note of current buying trends and make sure you understand your audience, if you’re not in the scroll, you’re not in the shop. Gen Z finds you before they search, so show up where it matters.

Real Over Perfect

Raised on filters, Gen Z now craves the unfiltered.

Glossy, primed, staged content doesn’t cut it, they value raw, unfiltered real voices and authentic experiences over traditional mediums with 92% saying authenticity matters more than perfection. (Morning Consult)

UGC, think messy mirror selfies and no-makeup try-on demos, these can and do often outperform polished campaigns which is why market adaption has been paying attention to these shifts, these are Micro-creators with real talk beating big-name endorsements.

So in summary, brands need to skip the perfection and aim for connection.