E.l.f., Nike, and Chick-fil-A Maintain Top Spots as Teens' Favorite Brands

In Piper Sandler's 46th semi-annual "Taking Stock With Teens" report, the preferences of teenagers for brands in the cosmetics, apparel, footwear, and restaurant sectors have remained consistent, with a few fluctuations among lower-ranked brands.

E.l.f. Beauty has retained its position as the leading cosmetics brand, witnessing a remarkable 13-point year-over-year increase, reaching 29% among female consumers.

Nike continues to dominate as the preferred brand for both apparel and footwear, while Chick-fil-A holds its position as the top-ranked restaurant choice among teenagers.

Notable changes include New Balance surpassing Vans to become the fourth favorite footwear brand, and Sephora outperforming Ulta as the preferred beauty shopping destination.

Teen Spending

Teenagers reported a 1% year-over-year decrease in self-reported spending, amounting to $2,316. This marks the first observed spending decrease since before the pandemic. While average spending by male teenagers has increased by 11% year-over-year, spending by female teenagers has seen an 8% year-over-year decline.

Gen Z's Purchasing Power is Growing

As the purchasing power of Generation Z continues to expand, understanding their spending habits is crucial for marketers. Piper Sandler's survey provides insights into both top brand preferences and changes in spending patterns.

The survey also examined how teenagers allocate their time on mobile and digital platforms. TikTok has gained popularity, with an 80-basis-point improvement since spring 2023, remaining the favorite social platform among teenagers (38%). Snap (28%) and Instagram (23%) follow as the next favored platforms.

YouTube (29.1%) has seen a 100-basis-point increase since spring 2023, while Netflix (28.7%) experienced a 220-basis-point decrease in daily video consumption among teenagers. Spotify has made modest gains in both usage (70%, up from 68%) and subscription rates (46%, up from 44%).

Gen Z's Buying Behavior Online

In the past year, Gen Z consumers have shown a preference for off-price and online-only retailers, with increases of 545 and 121 basis points year-over-year, respectively. Discount retailers, on the other hand, saw a significant year-over-year decrease of 440 basis points. Among e-commerce sites, Amazon is the favorite of 55% of respondents, followed by Shein, Nike, Goat, and Temu.

Despite the decrease in spending among female consumers, the "core beauty wallet," comprising cosmetics, skincare, and fragrance, has increased by 23% year-over-year to reach $324. Cosmetics, at $127, account for the largest share of beauty spending, the highest level since 2019.

Sephora has surpassed Ulta as the preferred beauty shopping destination, boasting a loyalty membership rate of 67%, higher than Ulta's 60%. In the footwear sector, New Balance has gained about 200 basis points in mindshare year-over-year, while Vans has lost approximately 350 basis points.

Brands like On Running and Hoka One One overindex as preferred athletic footwear brands among higher-income teenagers.

The slowdown in spending may be attributed to growing economic concerns among this age group, with inflation emerging as a prominent issue. According to Edward Yruma, Senior Research Analyst at Piper Sandler, inflation has become a top-of-mind issue for many young consumers, alongside environmental concerns.

The survey was conducted between September 4 and September 27 and collected responses from 9,193 teenagers in the United States.