Exciting Y-men

Members of the so-called ‘Generation Y’ now make up one of the most desired consumer segments. They are loyal, influential and like to share their opinion.

However, their consumer behaviour is very complex. POPAI analysed them and published the results in many places, including design:retail. POPAI’s Shopper Study in 2014 revealed interesting characteristics of men in the 18-34 age group. Looks matter to them a lot: a product’s packaging is just as important to them as its quality. They also like it things are different, this is the reason why after 10 years of decline soup sales started to grow again in the USA: manufacturers put them in cartons instead of selling them in tins. These men aren’t as keen on economising as the media suggest. Men belonging to Generation Y don’t really gather information before going shopping: 69 percent of them don’t read promotional leaflets or newsletters, they don’t download coupons or watch commercials. They are prone to impulse buying: according to POPAI, 53 percent of Y-men don’t plan FMCG buying in advance. In-store marketing experts reckon this is also the result of better, well-planned and well-implemented POS/POP campaigns and tools. While shopping, 35 percent of them use their smartphones (two years earlier this ratio was only 17 percent) and one quarter does it to compare prices. As for the composition of the group examined by POPAI, the majority of them were single and they most frequently mentioned Disney as a reliable brand.