Gen Z is embracing underconsumption

Gen Z TikTokers are touting "underconsumption core," aiming to make fewer purchases and hold onto older items for longer. This push towards saving money is likely a reflection of the youth's current economic struggles, and their apparent interest in the environment is driving sustainability efforts. However, overconsumption and underconsumption are often at odds on social media, with the drive to save battling the drive to buy the hottest new thing. 

Save money, live better

These efforts to dissuade people from making unnecessary purchases are in direct opposition to previous trends. "TikTok has turned almost everything into an opportunity for consumerism," said beauty journalist Laura Capon to Business of Fashion. "Even going for a walk is a shopping experience," she added, "referring to videos that show creators buying specific snacks, water bottles and accessories just to take a stroll." From Stanley cups to skincare must-haves, influencers are always pushing the next best thing. On social media, trends in fashion, beauty and lifestyle are in constant flux, which puts pressure on people to make purchases and keep up.

But overconsumption has its limits and Gen Z is beginning to see that. "They're feeling the high cost of living," Holly O'Neill, the president of retail banking at Bank of America, said to Fortune. "They know they need to set a budget, and they know they need to find ways to cut back." As a result, the new movement encouraging underconsumption has begun making its rounds. "At the heart of the underconsumption trend is the principle of mindful consumption. This involves being deliberate about what and when to buy, focusing on the necessity, quality and sustainability of each purchase," said Sustainably Influenced. "Underconsumption is not about looking shabby or sacrificing personal style; it's about prioritizing practicality and utility over mere appearance."

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With the times

Saving money is not exactly a new trend among the youth. Just last year, there was "deinfluencing," when social media creators encouraged followers not to buy the latest trending item. Underconsumption just takes it a step further, putting an emphasis on keeping items for a longer period of time and obtaining higher quality items in the first place. "You don't want to waste the thing that you've already invested in or purchased; you want to optimize that," O'Neill said. "That both has a budget and a sustainability impact. I mean, we all know the satisfaction of using everything that you purchase and not wasting it. Gen Z is very attuned to that."

This trend also stems from collective exhaustion over aspects of consumption culture like fast fashion, which typically produces a lot of cheap clothes that don't last long. "Pushing back against unseemly excess is a sort of course-correction for consumers who feel jaded by influencers' ongoing promotion of products and displays of their own wealth," said Business of Fashion. In addition, because of the high cost of living, "millennial debt is higher than ever" so "it's unsurprising that some are seeking to reclaim a simpler life."

While underconsumption is currently trending, it will probably not "radically change spending trends," O'Neill said. Influencers will continue promoting products and cleverly targeted ads will entice us to buy things we don't need. "These online trends exist because of a generation's broader ideas about the economy, but they likely don't sway them," O'Neill added.