For 21-year-old Sivan Genier, authenticity, human connection and originality play a major role when he walks down the beauty and fashion store aisles. 

A self-proclaimed fashion aficionado since grade school – and currently a television and film producer based out of Sherman Oaks and Palms – Genier spends his weekends with friends “thrifting,” with the keen eye of a seasoned art collector.

He favors unconventional pieces that could strike up a conversation – like branded t-shirts from the 1970s saying “Pepsi Cola” and “any shirt that makes you look like you work somewhere you didn’t, when you weren’t alive.” And the “weird” clothes are true conversation starters, because they signal intrigue and provoke thoughts. Other than that, thrifting is a cheaper option, Genier said. It yields more unique finds at a much lower price point compared to big-name retailers, an attractive trait for many Gen Zers like Genier who’re discovering their purchasing power.

“Anything that could cause an interaction, I gravitate towards,” Genier said. “People are really finding their identity in clothes again, which I think went away for a really long time.”

Genier is one among many Gen Zers who tuned in to the call of fashion with a style-savvy, price-conscious and human-centric attitude. The Gen Z shopper is diverse, digital and value-seeking, said Rebecca Lohrey, a L.A.-based audit and assurance partner at Deloitte. They follow micro-influencers in search of authentic, relatable user stories over paid posts, discover, buy and share their next finds through social media – all while searching for deals.

“This is a generation that really expects seamless transition from discovering product to buying product to sharing their experiences with product or with in‑store experiences,” Lohrey said. “This is the most connected generation that we’ve seen, and we see that translate into true value‑seeking behaviors in their shopping values as well.”

A complex relationship with AI

The generation born between 1997 and 2012, who according to a PricewaterhouseCoopers report in October will amass $12 trillion in purchasing power by 2030, is a tough nut to crack for fashion and beauty companies looking to scale their technological portfolio. Artificial intelligence is gaining both traction and controversy, as Gen Zers increasingly adopt AI in decision-making but dislike the message of inauthenticity it implies.

On one hand, AI seems to flourish: recent KPMG data shows a combined 56% of Gen Z shoppers either often or in the past year have used AI tools to do research on gifts and plans. Duleep Rodrigo, KPMG U.S. sector leader for consumer and retail, noted that the number was increasing by double digits with each survey. While most product awareness and discovery still occur over social media, AI is increasingly used to compare items, according to Rodrigo.   

“(Gen Z is) going to be the generation that continues to accelerate and shift us towards using AI for discovery and purchasing,” Rodrigo said.

In L.A., local retailers and brands consider AI a useful tool to provide shopping shortcuts and analyze user data. Kim Kardashian’s Skims Body Inc., for instance, joined ChatGPT’s instant checkout feature where users can make a purchase through the AI platform. McKinsey and Co. reported last year that by creating “hyper-personalized” marketing messages using AI, beauty brands can boost conversion rates by up to 40%.

“AI can analyze large consumer data sets, detect patterns, and create microsegments based on pattern recognition algorithms,” according to the McKinsey report. “From there, a beauty brand can train its gen AI platform using a variety of inputs, including customer data, inputs that describe the brand voice, and product information.”

That use of AI, however, has its limits. While a narrow majority of Gen Z consumers use AI actively to make purchasing choices – or in the case of Genier, curate a list of stores to visit on a shopping trip – the idea of an AI-curated wardrobe and the prospects of non-human-led advertising seem less appealing.

“Advertising really used to require some thought,” Genier said. “It was an art form in some shape or form, but now it’s just AI, and the reason it really sucks is because they can just pump out as many as they want at any time, so it’s just flooding your feed with ads.”

The young producer added: “People want authenticity, people want human work … people don’t want things that require no effort and are just thrown at them.”

That is not an isolated remark. A Retail Technology Show report suggested that 58% of Gen Z consumers distrust AI-generated social content based on responses from more than 1,000 shoppers. Seventy percent said authenticity and human-made campaigns would incentivize them more towards a purchase on social media.

The general attitude towards AI has been cooling. A report from Washington-based Gallup Inc. in April indicated that while over half of Gen Zers in the U.S. use generative AI weekly or more often, they have become angrier at the technology and less excited compared to 2025. The report pointed to Gen Z’s doubts that AI could undermine cognitive and skill development, while the efficiency gains are just not worth it. Fortune magazine found that AI has been quietly erasing entry-level positions right as Gen Z graduates enter the job market, brewing anxiety over the technology.

Applied to fashion, that means this is still a market favoring human-centered interactions. A Vogue Business survey of 250 readers discovered that 27% of respondents lean towards trusting influencer recommendations, while only 8% trust AI more. The reason is that “many see fashion as inherently human,” according to the survey.

“With over seven in 10 saying they would never trust an AI influencer, there is a general consensus that AI lacks the personal, emotional and creative touch that real people can offer,” the survey report said. “With one respondent saying, ‘AI can’t physically try the products,’ unlike influencers, where you can ‘see the clothes on their body.’”

Vintage and nostalgia

For a generation that both grew up in a digitally infused world and endured the Covid-19 pandemic in their formative years, in-personal experience seems as valuable as digital connections. A Business of Fashion report pointed out that while Gen Z generally accept AI when shopping for beauty products, they tend to blend it with a focus on ingredients and a preference for in-store shopping.

“But only brands with real credibility and community cachet can convert curiosity into loyalty,” the report said.

The generation is reviving brick-and-mortar retailers with this trend. Circana data shows 62% of general merchandise purchases from shoppers between the ages of 18 and 24 were made in-store last year, compared to only 52% above the age of 25.

Cooling off with technology and warming up to human connections, analog is in vogue. The combined needs for a good price and good quality led to a surge in the vintage market. Beyond fashion, Gen Z is also buying vintage makeup and household products, “because honestly a lot of the stuff there at that time was better, because… (companies) weren’t trying to cost-cut, it was probably a lot higher-quality,” said Genier.

Fashion is a cycle, Rodrigo noted, and social media amplifies existing retro trends. Brand loyalty is declining for the generation, and with that comes more experimentation.

“There’s probably three things, there’s cost, there’s environmental impact … but there’s also style,” he said. “You’re able to stay within trend but also be able to keep it very affordable.”

This goes together with the focus on micro-influencers and rapidly updating trends. In the years following the pandemic, Gen Zers have spurred multiple fashion trends on social media, including “tomato girl summer,” “cottagecore,” “dopamine dressing” and Y2K nostalgia. Subcultures are becoming mainstream, with Business of Fashion noting a “personal style obsession.” Companies that provide an emotional connection are achieving 85% in sales growth compared to their competitors, according to Gallup.

And right now, a highly saturated yet balanced palette is chic – “a color-correct tapestry,” as Genier called it, where “nothing goes without thought.”

Ethics and decline of fast fashion

A heightened sense of sustainability and brand ethics further fuel the trend of retro and niches.

Lohrey noted that Deloitte data shows Gen Zers will spend more for sustainable products and participate more in resale than older generations. In addition, ethical evaluations of a company can impact purchase decisions. Gallup analytics suggest that 60% of Gen Zers prefer brands that echo their values.

That has a direct impact on the fashion giants that previously dominated the space, such as fast fashion.

A recent Forbes report projected a $74 billion U.S. resale market by 2029, double the size of fast fashion.

Locally, Lincoln Heights-based fast fashion brand Forever 21 shuttered its headquarters and all U.S. operations amid a bankruptcy last year.

“Fast fashion isn’t going away – it’s evolving. Consumers still respond to speed, value, and trend relevance, especially in digital channels, but the model is under growing pressure to prove it can be more responsible,” Lohrey said. “The next chapter of fashion retail will be about balancing immediacy with resilience, transparency and sustainability.”