Gen Z gets married and the bridal industry grows

For Gen Z, it's time to walk down the aisle... in their own way. Leave it to previous generations to cater to others' needs and follow traditions. No more dresses that make you look like a cake and you'll never wear again. No more heavy makeup and hair styled with tons of hairspray and pins. Goodbye to endless guest lists, cake-cutting ceremonies, forced group photos, and long formal dinners. The only rule: create an aesthetic that translates well on social media. Everything is photographed and shared, posted on Instagram and TikTok. This ongoing "contentification" and the style changes imposed by Gen Z are reflected in the evolution of the wedding industry, which must quickly adapt to new demands. New professional figures like the wedding content creator emerge—a sort of social media manager who, smartphone in hand, documents the special day for followers— emerges and, at the same time, new opportunities open up for suppliers, companies, and brands to leverage social exposure to promote products and launch targeted campaigns.

The Gen Z Wedding

What does Gen Z want for their wedding? Time, personalization, and authenticity. They want to do things their own way, keeping only some traditions from the past while adding new rituals. They invite only guests they truly know and want to share that special moment with; they opt for minimal floral decorations and bouquets to cut costs; they avoid the cringe of cake-cutting but do post-ceremony interviews or confessions in reality show style. They prefer photos with direct flash, like those taken by paparazzi, for fresh and spontaneous images. Everything is curated to look uncurated. Gen Z couples are influenced by TikTok for wedding inspiration, trying to create memorable moments that can go viral, from choreographed dances at the altar to the first kiss as husband and wife, wife and wife, or husband and husband in sketch form. More and more often, it's not just a wedding day but a wedding weekend, a series of events that goes beyond classics like engagement parties and bachelorette nights, including pre-wedding vacations and post-wedding brunches. And, as Sofia Richie Grainge's recent wedding teaches us, the bride and groom, especially the bride, change looks at every event.

What Do Brides Want Today?

During four days of wedding celebrations in the south of France, Sofia wore a total of nine different looks, something blue, new and archival Chanel, and custom makeup by Pati Dubroff. Not many Gen Z brides may be able to wear creations from a major Maison, but none of them want to give up feeling special, unique, and beautiful. More and more, they are opting for a multiple wardrobe, including colorful and unconventional pieces designed to be worn beyond the altar. They no longer limit themselves to shopping at specialized stores: they search for vintage, fast fashion, online, and contemporary brands, looking for non-standard pieces that better reflect their personal style. Thus, the global bridal wear market, which according to a report by Global Bridal Wear Market Industry is worth $63.4 billion USD in 2023, is expected to reach $83.5 billion USD by 2030, 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, The RealReal offer bridal proposals, and recently Ssense has also joined the fray, launching an "anti-bridal" collection that includes unusual dresses, bridesmaid dresses, and accessories from brands like Jacquemus, Collina Strada, Chopova Lowena, Sandy Liang, and Simone Rocha. All this confirms that thanks to Gen Z, the bridal market is constantly growing and is no longer confined to bridal shops but extends across the entire fashion sector.

The Bridal Makeup Sector Grows

Compared to millennials and Gen X, Gen Z brides opt for more natural makeup looks and tend to leave heavy eyeshadows, false lashes, contouring products, and overly elaborate hairstyles at the bottom of their beauty cases. They are highly informed and knowledgeable about market offerings and can navigate techniques and tools almost as well as professional makeup artists. They know what they want, find inspiration on social media for the style to recreate, and document every step of their preparation with the attention of a Hollywood director. In GRWM for a wedding videos, we can witness dress fittings, teeth whitening, makeup applications, and there’s always a shot of the bride checking her finished look with a compact mirror. It's evident that the contentification of weddings embraced by Gen Z represents a significant opportunity for the global bridal beauty market, which is expected to reach $70.8 billion USD 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 accessories brand Lele Sadoughi, including a hair bow, waterproof mascara, and setting spray, created dedicated landing pages on its website showcasing different bridal looks, and posted a highlight video on its Instagram full of wedding tips. The result? As revealed by BoF, Too Faced’s wedding-themed emails had a 62% higher open rate than standard emails, while the bridal look page on its website received 46% more views than other trending pages.

In an attempt to recruit a new wave of customers riding the wave of the growing popularity of wedding content, the fragrance brand Jo Malone London not only "scented" the special days of Sofia Grainge and model Olivia Culpo, but also launched "Scent Your Wedding", a highly appreciated 45-minute free session where future brides test a range of perfumes before choosing one. There are many ways to capitalize on the wedding revolution led by Gen Z, with the social echo it generates; it’s up to beauty brands (and others) to find the most profitable one.