For Gen Z, it's time to walk down the aisle… in your own way. Leave it to previous generations to cater to the needs of others and follow traditions. No more dresses that look like a cake and will never be worn again. No more heavy makeup and styling your hair with loads of hairspray and pins. Say goodbye to endless guest lists, cake-cutting ceremonies, compulsory group photos and long formal dinners. The only rule is to create an aesthetic that will translate well on social media. Everything will be photographed, shared and posted to Instagram and TikTok. This ongoing “contentification” and style change imposed by Gen Z is reflected in the evolution of the wedding industry, which must quickly adapt to new demands. New professionals such as wedding content creators, a kind of social media manager who, with a smartphone in hand, document the special day for their followers, will emerge, and at the same time, new opportunities will open up for suppliers, companies and brands to use social exposure to promote their products and launch targeted campaigns.
Generation Z Wedding
What do Gen Z want from a wedding? Time, personalization, and authenticity. They want to do it their way, so they keep some traditions of the past while adding new rituals. They invite only guests they really know and want to share their special moment with, keep floral decorations and bouquets to a minimum to cut costs, avoid awkward cake cuttings, and do reality-show-style post-wedding interviews and confessionals. They favor photos with direct flash like those taken by paparazzi for fresh, natural images. Everything is curated to look uncurated. Gen Z couples are influenced by TikTok as wedding inspiration, and they try to create memorable moments that will go viral, from choreographed dances at the altar to their first kiss as husband and wife, wife and wife, or sketch-style married couple. Weddings are increasingly becoming wedding weekends, not just about the wedding day, but a series of events beyond the standard events like engagement parties and bachelorette nights, to pre-wedding getaways and post-wedding brunches. And as Sofia Richie Grainge's recent wedding teaches us, grooms and brides, especially brides, change their look for each event.
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True love can be nauseating (positively). Annika White and Carl Michael Knight share their couples dressing expertise for the SSENSE Bridal Collection, available now on SSENSE.com.
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What does the modern bride want?
During the four-day wedding celebration in the south of France, Sofia showed off a total of nine looks, including something blue, new and archive Chanel, and custom makeup by Pati Dubroff. While not many Gen Z brides can wear pieces from major fashion houses, none of them want to give up on feeling special, unique, and beautiful. More brides are choosing multiple wardrobes, including colorful and unconventional pieces meant to be worn outside the altar. No longer confined to shopping at specialized stores, they are exploring vintage, fast fashion, online, and contemporary brands for non-standard pieces that better reflect their style. Thus, the global bridal wear market, which is expected to be worth $63.4 billion in 2023 and reach $83.5 billion by 2030 according to the Global Bridal Wear Market Industry report, is adapting. Following the example of Anthropologie (one of the first non-bridal retailers to enter the market with the launch of its Bhldn line in 2011), Reformation, Abercrombie & Fitch, Revolve and The RealReal have bridal proposals, and recently Essence has also joined the fray, launching an “anti-bridal” collection with unusual dresses, bridesmaid dresses and accessories from brands such as Jacquemus, Collina Strada, Chopova Rowena, Sandy Liang and Simone Rocha. All this confirms that thanks to Gen Z, the bridal market is constantly growing and is no longer limited to bridal shops but has spread throughout the fashion industry.
Growth of the bridal makeup category
Compared to millennials and Gen X, Gen Z brides tend to favor a more natural look, relegating heavy eyeshadow, false eyelashes, contouring products, and overly elaborate hairstyles to the bottom of their cosmetic cases. They are highly informed and knowledgeable about market offerings, with almost equal command of techniques and tools as professional makeup artists. They know what they want, find inspiration on social media for looks to recreate, and document every step of their preparations with the attention of a Hollywood director. In GRWM wedding videos, dress fittings, teeth whitening, and makeup application can be witnessed, with the inevitable shot of the bride checking out the finished look in a compact mirror. It is clear that Gen Z’s embrace of wedding contentification represents a huge opportunity for the global bridal beauty market, which is expected to reach $70.8 billion by 2027. One of the first brands to recognize the potential of this event was Too Faced. The Estée Lauder-owned brand released a limited-edition wedding day set in collaboration with cult-favorite accessories brand Lele Sadowgi that included a hair bow, waterproof mascara, and setting spray, created a dedicated landing page on its website showcasing different bridal looks, and posted a highlight video full of wedding tips on Instagram. The results? As BoF revealed, Too Faced's wedding-themed emails had 62% higher open rates than standard emails, and the bridal look page on its website received 46% more views than other trend pages.
In an effort to tap into new customer segments amid the growing popularity of wedding content, fragrance brand Jo Malone London not only “scented” Sophia Grainge and model Olivia Culpo on their special days, but also launched “Scent Your Wedding,” a highly successful free 45-minute session that allows brides-to-be to try out different perfumes before choosing their scent. There are many ways to capitalize on the Gen Z-led wedding revolution and the social resonance it is generating, but it's up to beauty brands (and others) to find the most profitable ways to do so.
