A recent study by RTS reveals Millennials have overtaken Gen Z as the fastest-growing demographic for social media shopping. While Gen Z is often dubbed the “TikTok generation,” Millennials now lead in purchases across platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook.
The survey of over 1,000 shoppers found Millennial social commerce purchases rose by 36% year-on-year. Millennials made an average of 21 purchases on TikTok last year, compared to 20 by Gen Z, and outpaced Gen Z on Facebook (20 vs 14) and Instagram (19 vs 18). However, Gen Z retained their lead on Roblox, with 13 purchases (up 44% year-on-year) versus 12 by Millennials.
Social commerce in the UK is forecast to more than double, reaching £16 billion by 2028, according to Retail Economics. TikTok remains the dominant platform, with the average shopper making 11 purchases in the past year—a 37.5% increase from 8 the previous year—followed closely by Instagram and Facebook, each with 10 purchases.
Matt Bradley, Event Director at RTS, commented:
“The rise of social media channels has been well-charted, and it shows no signs of stopping. As shoppers’ seemingly insatiable appetite for content-led commerce continues to grow, this has given rise to a new cohort of ‘TikTok made me buy it’ consumers, an increasingly valuable shopper segment that retailers want to tap into. However, with mass adoption and a wider demographic of consumers outside of just Gen Z now driving this growth, retailers will need to adapt how they engage and retain social shoppers, requiring data-led decision making to optimise targeting and engagement.”
