Issue #40: Are we all buying stuff to cope right now?

Yes, yes we are.

Hi everyone, hope you’re enjoying the four-day work week (if you had Monday off, which I’m praying that you did). I visited my boyfriend at his stunning new office and watched The Paris Christmas Waltz with my roommate. It was some quality content, we’ll have you know!

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Spending money is our coping mechanism 💰

Earlier this week,

Casey Lewis

wrote about how young people are shopping to cope with post-election anxiety. I can relate. Last week, I got a facial, went to Sephora to stock up on some of my favorites from the Beauty Insider Sale, and spent a morning in Soho popping into Sézane, APC Surplus, Zara, and more. It definitely didn’t cure my post-election woes, but I won’t lie… it didn’t make it worse.

The Telegraph published a piece on Tuesday about the so-called ‘doom spending’ trend among Gen Z democrats who are spending money to cope with the election results. First things first: I don’t think spending money to make ourselves feel better is a trend – we do that all the time. 

However, it is a trend when spending more money than usual is a widespread response to collective societal concerns, like political or economic change. The Trump win last week caused a sense of collective anxiety among democrats, resulting in noticeable, widespread shifts in spending behavior and conversations about spending behavior over the past week. Gen Z now has way more spending power than we did in 2016, and it seems that we’re wielding it to cope. I mean, I was 17 in the 2016 election, so I didn’t really have the disposable income to participate in doom spending.

@celesteiacevedoIm so excited to use everything lol #girltok #sephorahaul #election2024 #retailtherapy

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Intuit Credit Karma (oh hey 👋) conducted a survey at the end of October finding that 27% of people engage in recent doom spending to alleviate their election anxiety. I’d be curious to see how that number differs between Democrats and Republicans, and how it has changed now that the election is over. 

The survey also cites that 37% of Gen Z and 39% of millennials participate in shopping sprees to cope with recent stress, which makes sense, given that Gen Z is a notoriously anxious generation, and we like buying stuff. Plus, there’s a larger existential conversation here: younger generations might feel like it’s impossible to ever buy a home or retire early, so we might as well spend our money and enjoy life in the present.

The social conversation 💬

The social conversation happening right now around doom spending is interesting. On the one hand, girlies are posting videos of their shopping hauls openly, referencing the election as the main factor in their increased spending over the past week or so. On the other hand, some are attempting to not shop or shop less in order to avoid supporting the economy that Trump is about to take over. 

@annaredmanCant even do the only thing im good at

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And people have different takes on it:

This last one hits home.

Here’s the thing: I don’t think that doom spending is the worst coping mechanism. I mean, there could be worse things. But of course, it’s also not super helpful in the long-term. And in regards to the conversation around not participating in the economy, one could argue that limiting purchases to make things more difficult for Trump might actually just end up negatively impacting businesses and employees in the short-term.

Brands & doom spending 💄

Okay, so why was Sephora particularly well-positioned for doom spending? As mentioned, Sephora hosted their Beauty Insider Sale from November 1st through November 11th, which aligned with the timing of the election and this wave of doom spending. My friend

zoya

and I were curious if Sephora’s Beauty Insider sales saw a boost this year, but it’s likely too soon to tell, and I can’t find any public performance metrics.

We do know that the beauty industry is especially well-positioned for doom spending, since consumers may lean into “self-care” purchases like skincare and makeup during this time, more so than other types of products. Plus, shopping in-store at a Sephora feels fun – it’s an enjoyable experience for consumers right now.

If Gen Z is buying more stuff around challenging political or economic times, then are brands going to start reacting to this movement? It feels really icky for companies to ramp up their marketing or to time their promotions or launches for challenging times.

I started thinking about what brands could do, but everything just feels disingenuous, so I’m going to abstain from making any recommendations for brands. Honestly, it’s in brands’ best interest to just avoid doing anything out of the ordinary during intense political times. Best to just sit this one out!

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Also, I finally created a TikTok (!!) to share more about consumer trends and breakdowns of the topics I write about here on Substack. I have yet to actually post anything, at the time of writing my only follower is my sister, and apparently I can’t change my username for 30 days…? So pls bear with me while I get the hang of this thing :)

Next week, I’m hosting the fabulous Gemma (my amazing, brilliant younger sister and only Tiktok follower) on for another chat about holiday shopping trends. Can’t wait to share it with you. xx