How can you tap into gen Z?

Gen Z has more purchase power than ever before and they are choosing ethical brands.

More and more, consumers are looking to purchase items from brands that align with their personal values. This shift has been driven in part by a new generation of consumers who are purpose-led in their purchasing decisions.

If you’ve ever wondered how passionate gen Z is about activism, look no further than Greta Thunberg – the climate campaigner typifies it.

Where some see youthful fervour in this brand of activism, others are taking note that this is a generation that will spend money based on personal value systems, rejecting brands that don’t fit the mould.

With millennials and gen Z around the world showing declining trust in traditional institutions, co:collective co-founder Ty Montague has said that this “crisis of trust” also extends to private industry.

Co:collective’s research of millennials and gen Z found that 63 percent of respondents, when questioned about their trust in business executives, believed that ‘they are purposely misleading us’ – a percentage close to that of those who believe the same of politicians and journalists.

63% – young people who feel that business executives are ‘purposely misleading’ customers

Furthering the crisis Ty spoke about, trust in companies is at just 50 percent among millennials and 42 percent among gen Z – and it’s falling in both groups.

This is all linked to younger generations’ fears about climate change and economic stability, and about capitalism’s impact on both.

“The entire environment for business leaders today is shifting. There was a time when, as a leader or a founder of a business, if someone asked you to comment on religion or politics, your job was to zip it,” Ty reflected.

“That rule has changed. 90 percent of young people think that companies have an obligation to solve social and environmental problems. 81 percent want to see CEOs actively engaged in these issues.”

This extends beyond winning over gen Z consumers. Now, according to Ty, it includes hiring them: “In the war for talent alone, if you want to get young people inside your company, you need to be out talking about things.”

90% – young people who feel companies have an obligation to solve social and environmental problems

“60 percent of young people would choose where they want to work based on seeing the CEO out in front, leading the charge here,” said Ty, who added that there is pressure on business leaders to stand for something; to have stances on politics, the environment and social justice issues, and to act upon these stances.

“This is disorienting for business leaders. It’s a strange new world,” Ty said, adding that it’s nevertheless a hopeful one, purely because it liberates CEOs to speak out on issues that really matter to them.

It’s all part of a relatively new movement known as conscious capitalism, Ty explained. This is something that outdoor clothing company Patagonia is engaged in.

It’s suing the US government to protect wild and open land, and is sewing tags into its clothing with slogans such as “Vote the assholes out”. The US-based Dick’s Sporting Goods is also embracing conscious capitalism, choosing to no longer sell automatic rifles.

In essence, then, conscious capitalism – a term coined by Whole Foods co-founder and CEO John Mackey and Babson College professor of marketing Raj Sisodia – describes a new way of doing business that is based on a deeper purpose than simply maximising profits.

Whether they’re shopping for a brand or looking for a job, said Ty, this is exactly what gen Z wants in a company.

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Main image of Ty Montague, co-founder & CEO, Co:collective, on Centre Stage during day one of Collision 2022: Lukas Schulze/Web Summit (CC BY 2.0)