Gen Z’s top brands, according to Piper Sandler’s 47th semi-annual Taking Stock with Teens survey.

CULTURE MOMENT: Piper Sandler just dropped its spring 2024 Taking Stock with Teens survey findings, and it reveals key shifts among young consumers. With over 6,000 teens surveyed, it’s a solid benchmark for how Zs are feeling about brands.

Some of the key findings:

• Teen spending is up since last year, but still lower than pre-pandemic levels. Teenagers’ self-reported spending was $2,263 annually, up 1% compared to last fall’s survey, but down 6% year-over-year.

• Nike is the leading brand among teens. A whopping 59% of teens ranked Nike as their favorite footwear brand, and 34% also named Nike as their top clothing brand.?

• Challenger brands are on the rise. Hoka and On have increased share among upper-income teens. This is part of a growing trend overall of smaller, innovative brands taking market share from incumbents. In apparel, Alo Yoga and Vuori both saw dramatic spikes in popularity. “We think social media has led to an accelerated trend cycle including an increased emphasis on key products, and brands will have to be nimble to keep up,” said Abbie Zvejnieks, senior research analyst at Piper Sandler.

• Beauty continues to dominate. 38% of teens named E.l.f Cosmetics as their top cosmetics brand, followed by Rare Beauty at just 9%.

• Amazon reigns in the e-commerce space. More than half (55%) of teens said that Amazon was their top e-commerce site, followed by Shein (12%), Nike (6%), Goat (2%) and Temu (2%).

Gen Z's path to purchase is a winding one. Brands must understand how their consumption is an infinite loop of inspiration, exploration, community, and loyalty. To learn more, check out our full report on how Gen Z Broke The Marketing Funnel.