• Gen Z grew up with the climate crisis in mind, so they prefer sustainable choices to other options.
• The cost-of-living crisis is dealing a heavy blow to their sustainability ideals.
• More green businesses should come forward with affordable products and easy access to trends and fashions to bridge the gap and keep them engaged.

Gen Z, regarded as the sustainability generation, has lately alternated between sustainable shopping and budget-friendly, fast-fashion, trendy purchasing — not because of hypocrisy but owing to looming economic conditions and other factors.

Gen Z refers to people born between 1997 and 2012, though some sources cite the range as 1995 to 2012. They are popularly called the "sustainability generation" because they prioritise the environment more than their predecessors, including Generation X and Millennials, and care deeply about it.

Not just that, they also conduct elaborate research on brand ethics before making purchasing decisions and vouch for eco-friendly products.

READ MORE: The Booming Green Economy: The Growth of Climate-Related Jobs

Studies point out that over 75% of Gen Z prefer sustainability to brand names, and 85% are willing to pay premium prices for environmentally friendly products.

Regardless of these aspirations and preferences, their shopping habits do not always hold water or align with their sustainability ideals, a phenomenon known as the attitude-behaviour gap.

Today’s fast fashion, online shopping, and Instagram influencers, through their affiliate marketing, have made trendy products much easier and more affordable to access at their fingertips. To heighten such consumption, companies like Shein are promoting high-volume, cheap purchases, which invariably stand against sustainable buying.

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It is also important to mention how engrossing social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok are in influencing the behaviour of young consumers and keeping them in a loop with a smorgasbord of endless trends that tempt them to buy such products more often.

Also, fast shipping and low prices are grabbing their attention and getting them hooked on this pattern of shopping, which makes them think of compromising their sustainable choices.

Affordability is also playing a notable role in Gen Z's shopping these days. Undoubtedly, a wide choice of sustainable products is expensive, driving away young people—particularly those on a lower budget. Brands such as Patagonia and Allbirds are popular among green buyers, but their products are high-end, and many youngsters cannot afford them because of rising costs.

What is a practical solution to this problem? Well, more sustainable businesses should come to the fore with affordable, attractive prices, along with other contingent factors like speedy delivery, convenience, discounts, and trends. Making such sustainable options more visible to them is the need of the hour.

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Gen Z's current change in shopping habits is neither about hypocrisy nor a dent in their ideals, but rather about the cost of living crisis. To reduce the attitude-behaviour gap, the onus is on sustainable fashion businesses to address their pain points. Eventually, as a reminder, Gen Z need to be more aware of marketing tactics and the hidden costs of such consumption.

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Source: The Conversation