The Financial Express (Delhi Edition)
Here comes the Instagram bride
The bridal industry faces challenges in catering to a new demographic—millennials
May 14: The millennials— those born between 1980 and 2000—are getting married. As this cohort of digital natives and online shoppers comes of age, the bridal industry faces new challenges in catering to them.
Such are the findings of a report written by José Luis Nueno of the Instituto de Estudios Superiores de la Empresa at the University of Navarra in Spain, with Silvia Rodríguez and A.B.N. Metrics. Commissioned by Barcelona Bridal Fashion Week, the report focuses on millennial-specific trends in the global wedding industry. It also homes in on the successes of the Spanish bridal industry, which has a turnover of close to $1.5 billionand employs 6,000 people in wedding dresses alone.
What makes marketing to millennials different? For one thing, they are the most digitally accessible—and digitally dependent—of all demographic groups. With 2.7 devices per person, the study states, millennials shift between them, from smartphone to PC to tablet to console etc., as much as 27 times a day. Even if today’s bride plans to buy a wedding dress offline, you can be sure that she checked online for store locations, brand reputations, Instagram photos and more.
First, it’s important to note that not all millennials are getting married. The marriage rate in the world’s most developed countries is falling, with a few exceptions—the United States, Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom show a slight uptick. Millennials’ marriages also are happening later, as women get their careers on track and struggle to overcome the setbacks of the global financial crisis.
Yet more wedding bells are ringing in the world’s developing countries. This is partly due to demographic shifts, which are expected to continue. While advanced economies have aging populations and fewer millennials overall, in developing countries there are eight people of marriage able age—between 18 and 34— for each person of the same age range in developed regions, a ratio that is expected to increase to 9 to 1 by 2030.
Not only is the volume of weddings moving to the world’s developing markets, but spending also seems to be moving there. Before the global financial crisis, between 2005 and 2007, many mature markets reached a spending peak, with recovery seen only in the past few years.
The lesson for those in Europe and North America’s bridal industries is to look beyond the home market .“The wedding markets of the future will be ‘elsewhere,'” the report concludes, so international is at ion is essential.
By 2020 the median age of millennials will be 30, a ripe time for saying “I do.” The bridal industry needs to be ready to market to these digital natives effectively. Beyond demographic changes, these factors present challenges and opportunities.
An obvious one is the deployment of creative, userfriendly e-commerce. Millennials account for 46% of online clothing purchases, versus only 32% of the online-and-offline total. While most wedding-attire sales continue to take place in brick-and-mortar shops, it’s only a matter of time before that changes.
There are also opportunities for aggressive pricing. We’re living in “the Age of Cheap.” Millennials grew up with discounts, fast fashion, outlets and low-cost options. There is no such model in the bridal industry yet, but an absence of price competition, with almost 85% of dresses selling for $1,100 or more, could mean rich rewards for a lower-cost company.
Mobility is physical, not only digital. Millennials are quick to take advantage of low-cost flights to travel. They also are quick to move big events, such as weddings, to appealing destinations. Companies need to figure out the best way to attract these moving targets.
Millennials also reap the rewards of postponement: By delaying their nuptials until they are in their 30s, they often have their careers well underway and have more disposable income to spend on a bespoke wedding experience.
One thing has remained the same in recent years: The dress is still the centerpiece of most weddings. Wedding spending may have fallen as a result of the financial crisis, but the wedding-dress segment of the industry was less hit than others.
“Brides are giving up on mass weddings,” the report says, “but not their image.”
While that dress still is most often purchased in-store after various fittings, Instagram, Pinterest and other websites and apps are key to defining the bride’s interests.
The report concludes with a list of consumer trends in weddings, many of which suggest means to profits for companies in the bridal industry:
Dress the guests: Evening gowns are a growth area, because guests always will out-number brides. Women on their second marriage are also more likely to choose evening wear.
Double-dipping: Intercultural marriages are on the rise and, with them, the opportunity for brides to wear not one, but two outfits. These might represent the different culturesher union, or it might be a simpler day-night divide.
The wedding planner: As luxury weddings become standard and brides get busier with their professions, the role of the wedding planner has grown considerably to deal with the complexities of flowers, invitations, venues and other tasks.
The wedding celebrities: In the media, celebrities continue to publicise the idea of the aspirational wedding. Increasingly bloggers and reality shows also reinforce the importance of a traditional wedding with multiple stages.
Plus-size: There are many opportunities in the plussize wedding-garment industry.
Jet-away: Destination weddings present new opportunities, as couples aim to provide guests with a different experience.
Omni-channel: With millennials connected to so many devices, brands must embrace coherent and consistent communication across them—from Instagram to e-commerce sites—even if brides ultimately buy their $1,100-plus dress in the shop.
By 2020 the median age of millennials will be 30, a ripe time for saying ‘I do.’ The bridal industry needs to be ready to market to these digital natives