Looking back at the outgoing year of 2023, it was the year of connecting with daily life after the end of the pandemic. According to the "2023 Interesting Lifestyle Report" released by China News Weekly a few days ago, the current "way of youth" can be summarized as: light life, sober consumption, and green attitude. In other words, the younger generation is trending towards a self-satisfying and sustainable way of "eating, drinking, and having fun".
In the face of a diverse group of young consumers, how can domestic and foreign outdoor and luxury brands flexibly cater to this potential market?In this article, Jing Daily takes stock of the 10 most popular lifestyles in 2023 from three parts: leisure experience, outdoor sports and spiritual healing, and analyzes their development trends and business value.
Experience life in a different way
In 2023, outdoor camping is all the rage. For urban youth who love outdoor experiences, camping is a new way of leisure, not only allowing participants to get out into nature, but also slowing down the fast-paced life that has intensified in recent years. As of press time, Xiaohongshu has more than 46 views on the topic of outdoor topics900 million times, many users have shared their daily routine of outdoor camping on different platforms, showing their love for the activity.
Outdoor camping has gained a group of loyal enthusiasts due to its characteristics.
***alizila
It is worth mentioning that urban activities such as citywalk, jogging, and dancing are also popular among more and more young people. It is reported that "citywalk" means "city walk", which refers to the leisure activity of participants immersed in walking on a specific urban route. As early as last year, Citywalk ranked fifth in the "Top 10 Life Trends of 2022" released by Xiaohongshu, and CityWalk, which does not require too many scenes and props, has become the best way for people to perceive a city.
In addition, as Jing Daily previously pointed out in a report, with the advent of the post-epidemic era, China's "concert economy" has also re-emerged, bringing quite objective economic benefits. At the same time, major brands have also "gone out of the circle" by designing performance costumes for singers and celebrities: in October this year, Yu Shuxin appeared at a concert in Nanjing wearing a love sequin dress specially customized by Chinese designer brand Yueqi Qi;In the past "Carnival" world tour, Chinese music superstar Jay Chou also performed a number of tailor-made costumes by Dior ** artistic director Kim Jones. Both of these have brought a lot of popularity on social platforms. By participating in celebrity concert events, brands are able to establish important connections with younger consumers.
When the "niche" movement becomes "mass".
With the 2023 snow season just around the corner, skiing is back on the go-to-heart. In fact, as early as last year's successful Beijing Winter Olympics and the promotion of national policies, the sport set off a national skiing boom and became the choice of sports enthusiasts in winter. "China's Ski Industry *** 2022-2023)" pointed out that after the Spring Festival this year, China's ski market has recovered rapidly, and the snow season has successfully recovered to the level of 2018 before the epidemic. With the arrival of the new snow season, brands will usher in more opportunities for development.
In the past two months, Balenciaga and Neiwai Active have released their first ski collections, with the former also creating an online interactive experience for the collection. High-end professional sports brand Descente has launched its fourth collaboration with Dior for the latest spring** ski collection. It is worth affirming that these trends will not only bring temporary popularity to the brand, but will also help the brand attract a new group of ice and snow sports enthusiasts, laying the foundation for future consumption.
Many brands have seized the opportunity to launch ski collections.
***balenciaga
As a surfing sport that also has high requirements for the weather, it is now breaking the boundary of "unattainable" and gradually entering the public eye. According to the "2023 Outdoor Life Trend Report" released by Xiaohongshu and a number of outdoor verticals**, outdoor activities such as hiking, cycling, camping, fishing, diving, surfing, and skiing have become a new lifestyle for more people. Previously, surfing has been popular abroad, but as young people in China begin to explore more diversified outdoor sports methods, this sport has also begun to rise in China. On Xiaohongshu, the number of notes on the topic of surfing has been more than 9900 million.
Slightly different from the recent rise of skiing and surfing, tennis is still a popular sport for the middle class. According to the tennis market research report released by Bergers Consulting, the global tennis market size reached 57 in 2021$3.9 billion;The global tennis market is expected to reach 68$8.8 billion. In the face of the growing tennis market, not only Celine launched her own tennis collection, but Gucci announced tennis player Jannik Sinner as a brand ambassador this year, these initiatives are also in line with the emerging outdoor trend in the Chinese market.
Gucci announced tennis player Jannik Sinner as a brand ambassador this year.
***gucci
As more and more "niche" outdoor sports become "popular", the market consumption potential of these sports is also constantly demonstrated, providing a broader development space for outdoor clothing brands. From domestic sportswear giants Anta, Li Ning and Xtep International, to international outdoor apparel manufacturers such as Arc'teryx and The North Face, major outdoor brands are competing fiercely in this market with unlimited potential.
"Spirit**" under pressure
In addition to venting emotions from a fast-paced lifestyle through outdoor sports, spiritual healing methods such as meditation are gradually becoming a way for younger generations to relieve stress. The Blue Book of "2023 China's Mental and Mental Health" points out that with the acceleration of the pace of life and work, the rapid intensification of social competition, and the increasing psychological pressure of the people, the mental health problems of the masses are prominent, and this topic has become one of the most concerned content for users on platforms such as Douyin and Bilibili. In the context of the continuous fermentation of mental health problems, many brands have seized this opportunity to consolidate their brand community through meditation.
Spiritual healing methods such as meditation are gradually becoming a way for the younger generation to relieve stress.
***adobe stock
At the same time, the unique spiritual healing method of "hugging trees" has slowly entered the public eye. It is reported that "hugging trees" was originally just an activity with the goal of healing and environmental protection, and then gradually evolved into a kind of "natural**" on social platforms, netizens not only shared their experience of "hugging trees", but also formed teams to carry out related activities. Many netizens gave positive comments on this activity: "'Hugging trees' can feel the power from trees and the earth", "When I am physically and mentally exhausted, 'Hugging Trees' can slow down my life".
In addition, "temple tourism" has become one of the most popular ways for the younger generation to travel. The "May Day Travel Trend Report" released by Qunar and Xiaohongshu summarizes the top ten travel trends since 2023, among which "Shangxiang Youth" is impressively listed. Qunar big data also shows that since March this year, ticket sales for temple-like attractions have increased by 367% year-on-year. As the younger generation pays more attention to psychological problems, they not only use temples as tourist destinations, but also hope to "calm down" through temples and get rid of negative emotions such as anxiety in real life.
"Temple tourism" has become one of the most popular ways for the younger generation to travel.
***unsplash
If meditation, tree hugging, and temple tours are a brief escape from reality to achieve spiritual peace, then plush toys provide young people with a sense of psychological security and comfort through the most direct companionship. Traditionally, "plush toys" have been branded as "children's only" and are now loved and sought after by the younger generation, and stroking plush toys is believed to reduce people's stress to a certain extent, soothe uneasy emotions and make people feel comfortable. Among the many plush toy options, Jellycat, a British toy brand with celebrity "goods", has become one of the popular choices for young people. In terms of goods, the word "sold out" often appears in Jellycat ** items.
The "emotional value economy" has become a trend. How to use emotions as an important clue to meet consumer needs and achieve spiritual resonance with them will be the key to forming a binding and connection between brands and consumers. From leisure experiences, to outdoor sports, and even spiritual healing, every popular lifestyle trend is a topic that brands need to delve into and find out where to market in line with consumer needs.
Written by queena
Edited by Jingyi Li