Numbers Game: Young shoppers will wait to pay less for beauty brands

Beauty brands shouldn’t expect younger shoppers to immediately jump on their most expensive products. To get in with the cool kids, turns out you gotta play hard to get—at least with what you’re selling.

ESW’s Global Voices Study revealed that two-thirds of Millennials and Gen Zers are willing to risk beauty products going out of stock in anticipation of lower prices in the future. The study defines “power shoppers” as those who spend at least $2,500 online annually on beauty products, and found almost 40% of them are bargain hunters.

• The most dedicated shoppers best respond to exclusive product launches where scarcity pulls them in. Those shoppers are more likely to dish out the full price if they can get their hands on it first (21%) or they’ll be the only ones to have it (25%).

“Younger consumers are driving the growth in the direct-to-consumer beauty market, yet despite their spending power, they remain very price-conscious,” Clarissa Schealer, ESW’s VP of sales, beauty, wellness, and lifestyle brands, said in a statement.

And young beauty shoppers know no bounds or borders. The study found that 24% of Millennials and 23% Gen Zers have made cross-border beauty purchases within the past year.

The study also found that Millennial and Gen Z consumers are more likely to shop across international borders for their beauty products. Nearly a quarter each of Gen Z (23%) and Millennial shoppers (24%) made beauty purchases cross-border within the last 12 months.

• The most popular countries to shop from included the United States (33%), France (33%), Germany (27%), and the United Kingdom (25%).