People
The people pillar can be described as focusing on the integral parts of a consumer’s daily life. These parts labelled as integral to a consumer’s daily life can be defined in the aspects of fashion, beauty and their overall well-being. This people pillar can therefore be argued as being seen as heightening the inclusivity within both the fashion and cosmetic industry and hence producing a positive outcome in terms of empowering an individual’s self identity. This concept of self identity can be defined in numerous ways in terms of an individual’s diversity which can include: age, race and ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation, religion, disabilities, socioeconomic status and many others (Ricee, 2021). These factors should be taken into account throughout the production process within both the cosmetic and fashion industry. The term Gen Z correlates to the generation of individuals born within the years of 1996 to 2010 and they can be considered as ‘the first generation of individuals to grow up with the internet as a part of daily life (McKinsey, 2023).
To be able to describe Gen Z as consumers, it is important to understand that this generation can be seen as having three values. These values are seen to consist of: ‘consumption as access rather than possession, consumption as an expression of individual identity and consumption as a matter of ethical concern.’ In addition to this, due to there being vast technological advances that label Gen Z as ‘digital natives’ it highlights the existence of a shift whereby there is an evident change in the ‘consumer landscape’ that blurs the lines of previous socioeconomic boundaries and goes further beyond Gen Z (Francis and Hoefel, 2018). Gen Z’s views can be seen as differing from previous generations where they have shown more positivity towards diversity and inclusivity and this is evident within the purchases they may be making which ‘extend to the companies they show support for through their purchases’. Similarly Gen Z’s views on gender and sexuality can be seen as highly progressive in terms of being able to redefine previous and rigid societal norms and to add further to this point, the ‘concepts of neurodiversity and advocating for greater accessibility for the disabled’ are embraced by this generation (Carrasco, n.d.).
A brand should be able to consider multiple different aspects when being able to cater their products towards the Gen Z market. This therefore means that when it comes to marketing towards this generation, it should be done effectively and a product has greater successes if promoted effectively within popular social media applications. A strong example that showcases the effectiveness of social media in gaining the attention of Gen Z is evidently seen within the growth and rise of TikTok, especially during the pandemic where life had become predominantly focused on online aspects during 2020. The idea of TikTok trends that get reciprocated on other social media platforms such as Instagram, for example, where this concept of ‘video-sharing’ has become its own sort of culture. ‘Gen Z is also generally known for its idealism’ which presents them as being ‘part of a new wave of inclusive consumers’ where this generation, specifically, sees the greater need to promote inclusivity, diversity and representation of those that lack the representation they require. Gen Z also tends to focus on the idea of sustainability as well as accountability when deciding on whether to support a company through purchasing their products or not. Furthermore it seems to be clear that through effective promotion of a brand’s products, especially through TikTok or influencer reviews, it provides enough of an influence towards to Gen Zers where statistics show that ‘40 percent of Gen Zers admit to being influenced online’ (McKinsey, 2023)
An brand that can be seen as an effective example in responding to diversity can include Fenty Beauty where ‘Rihanna was inspired to create Fenty Beauty & Fenty Skin after years of experimenting with the best-of-the-best in beauty—and still seeing a void in the industry for products that performed across all skin types and tones’ (Fenty Beauty, 2021). Once Fenty Beauty had been launched in 2017, especially with the 40 different foundation shades range, where Wilson states how this ‘was deemed a political move in the world of makeup’ and it is clearly highlighted that Rihanna’s motive for Fenty Beauty to be highly diverse had been ‘clear right from the first video preview of the campaign that featured women of a large variety of ethnicities and skin tones’. Not only this but Fenty Beauty’s products are also cruelty-free and vegan which is a popular aspect within this day and age and especially within Gen Z (Wilson, 2020). In terms of Fenty Beauty’s pricing, it can also be seen as relatively affordable compared to other brands such as MAC, where Fenty Beauty prices their infamous foundation at £32 compared to MAC which ranges from £34 to £39. Even though it can be currently seen that MAC contains 67 shades within their foundations, once compared with Fenty Beauty’s 59 shade range, it is clearly evident that the shade range found within the Fenty foundation is more diverse. (Fenty Beauty + Fenty Skin, n.d., MAC Cosmetics – Official Site, n.d.) In addition, it is also important to note that through the comparisons being made between Fenty Beauty and MAC, Fenty Beauty is cruelty-free unlike MAC who seem to state that they are cruelty-free, unfortunately have no longer been cruelty-free since 2012. This is evident where MAC ‘had lost their cruelty-free status when they started selling in China’ since ‘China tests on animals as a part of its safety assessment of cosmetic products’ (Rose, 2020). Henceforth, this highlights how Fenty Beauty is able to embrace transparency by including diversity within their production in numerous different factors, especially race and ethnicity, socioeconomically and in terms of ethics too.
The key people skills required for a fashion or cosmetic brand to be successful would include creativity, technological and leadership skills. Some brands may require roles to be empowered with ‘expanded leadership roles that have increased decision-making responsibility and accountability’ (Amed, 2023). This idea of a strong leadership role therefore shows relevance towards the values the Gen Z generation embrace in terms of holding businesses and brands to account which correlates to the increased need of these ‘expanded leadership roles’ within fashion and cosmetic brands. For creativity skills, this can link to increasing diversity in the production of fashion and cosmetic products as well as during the marketing and promoting aspects within a brand which would increase the positive outlook Gen Z may have on a brand and thus increase their consumption of said brand. By increasing diversity within the creative skill area of a brand, this henceforth can successfully heighten the representation of minority ethnic or racial groups or even towards the LGBTQIA+ community which generally fits towards Gen Z values of being progressive in comparison to previous generations. Moreover, technological skills can be seen as vital within our growing society in terms of development being made towards the use of AI in businesses which can be seen as having both positive and negative factors towards the job industry. Other than this, technological advances, especially made throughout Gen Z is what makes Gen Z ‘digital natives’ (Francis and Hoefel, 2018) in terms of this generation being able to have greater technological skills compared to previous generations which can be argued as important for a fashion or cosmetic brand as being seen as successful within our current society.
References:
Amed, I. (2023). The State of Fashion 2023. [online] Available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/industries/retail/our%20insights/state%20of%20fashion/2023/the-state-of-fashion-2023-holding-onto-growth-as-global-clouds-gathers-vf.pdf
Carrasco, M. (n.d.). Council Post: Gen Z: Brands Need To Prioritise DEI And Gender Liberation. [online] Forbes. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2022/03/01/gen-z-brands-need-to-prioritize-dei-and-gender-liberation/?sh=64c3de2174ab [Accessed 14 Oct. 2023].
Fenty Beauty (2021). About Fenty Beauty | Fenty Beauty. [online] Fenty Beauty + Fenty Skin. Available at: https://fentybeauty.com/pages/about-fenty-beauty.
Fenty Beauty + Fenty Skin. (n.d.). Foundation. [online] Available at: https://fentybeauty.com/collections/makeup-foundation.
Francis, T. and Hoefel, F. (2018). ‘True Gen’: Generation Z and Its Implications for Companies. [online] McKinsey & Company. Available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/consumer-packaged-goods/our-insights/true-gen-generation-z-and-its-implications-for-companies.
MAC Cosmetics – Official Site. (n.d.). Foundation | Liquid, Sticks, Powder & Cream | MAC Cosmetics. [online] Available at: https://www.maccosmetics.co.uk/products/13847/Products/Makeup/Face/Foundation.
McKinsey (2023). What is Gen Z? | McKinsey. [online] www.mckinsey.com. Available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/mckinsey-explainers/what-is-gen-z.
Ricee, S. (2021). Types of Diversity with Examples – The Definitive Guide [2020] | Best of Diversity & Inclusion, Sustainability 2020. [online] Diversity for Social Impact. Available at: https://diversity.social/workplace-diversity-types/.
Rose, S. (2020). The Sad Truth Behind MAC’s Misleading Cruelty-Free Claims. [online] Cruelty-Free Kitty. Available at: https://www.crueltyfreekitty.com/news/mac-cruelty-free-truth/.
Wilson, A., 2020. The Popularity of Fenty Beauty and How It Reflects the Online Beauty Community. Makeup in the World of Beauty Vlogging: Community, Commerce, and Culture, 37.