Of late, consumer markets across China are experiencing a tectonic shift. Purchases are no longer just about material possessions. Instead, the retail economy is now being driven by emotions. Youngsters aren’t spending solely for utilitarian value, as was the norm with older generations. Given this radical transformation in retail behavior, the CEO of Soul App, Zhang Lu, who helms one of the most popular social networking platforms in China, wanted to know what led to this change and just how far-reaching its effects are.
The “2025 Gen Z Emotional Consumption Report” from Just So Soul, the research division of the platform, was a step in this direction. Released in collaboration with Shanghai Youth Research Center, the study involved a comprehensive analysis of this cultural and commercial shift. Unlike traditional consumer studies that focus on price and utility, Soul Zhang Lu’s report dissects the role of emotional value as both a motivator and the outcome of spending.
When discussing their purchasing behavior with the researchers, more than two-thirds of the study’s Gen Z participants stated that basic products are no longer sufficient to move them emotionally. This assertion explains why simple novelty or superficial branding are failing to attract buyers. In fact, it highlights that a creating emotional resonance is no longer optional. Further scrutiny reveals 3 more dynamics that offer a glimpse into the consumer mindset of China’s youngsters:
- A discerning clientele: 19% of the people who participated in Soul Zhang Lu’s survey said that they are “more selective” about what provides emotional value.
- Passion for premium experience: 15.7% admitted that they now require higher-quality or more expensive products to feel emotionally satisfied.
- Ordinary goods out of favor: Over one-third indicated that routine items no longer deliver the emotional lift they once did.
At first, these consumer dynamics seem quite straightforward forward but when seen through the prism of gender and geography, the picture gets more complicated and colorful. For instance, Soul Zhang Lu’s researchers found that men gravitate towards immersive and socially interactive experiences, such as customized digital companions or competitive gaming circles.
As opposed to this, women focus on aesthetic detail and sensory depth, such as packaging, narratives, and ritual design. Notable differences were also observed in the consumer patterns from first-tier cities and smaller towns.
For example, given the stress and denseness of living in a bustling city, youngsters from these areas were partial to immersive and tailored emotional consumption. In contrast, small town folks were more prone to adopting rational postures and hence leaned towards simpler goods and more pragmatic evaluations.
When these finding are applied to manufacturers and sellers, a clear inference is that one-size-fits-all strategies will no longer work. Instead, the retail sector will have to meet youth where they are in terms of their emotional needs.
That said, Soul Zhang Lu’s study also analyzed the spending capability of Gen Z. According to the report, the average Zoomer’s spending on emotional purchases hovers around the 950 RMB mark. But, around 18% were spending almost double this amount. Yet, the researchers did not term this expenditure as extravagance. Instead, they noted that that the new spending habits were actually connected to deliberate intent which entailed emotional self-management through spending.
The inference was drawn from the fact that most emotional purchases are made after 10 PM. This indicates that emotionally fulfilling shopping is being treated as a coping mechanism of sorts. Also, it explains why consumption increases during periods of solitude or stress; after all, emotional buying is meant to be a form of self-soothing. Similarly, emotional purchases also increase during work breaks and commutes, which are periods marked by boredom.
In terms of motivations for buying, Soul Zhang Lu’s research team found that the impetus driving emotional purchases can be strikingly different from one person to another. For example, more than 48% of respondents said that they made emotional purchases to stabilize their emotions. For these individuals, loneliness and anxiety were common triggers.
But, for nearly 35% of the survey participants, the emotional spending was owed to celebrations and happy events such as festivals and birthdays. Moreover, when buying emotionally soothing products, women were motivated by a desire for happiness and self-care. So, for the fairer sex, these products often take on the form of rewards or even wellness rituals.
However, men tend to seek recognition and identity through their emotional spending. For them, these purchases are about declaring who they are or reinforcing membership in specific circles. In terms of what youngsters are buying to soothe their emotions, data from Soul Zhang Lu’s platform revealed that the hot favorites are:
- Tickets to concerts and live events
- AI companions
- Labubu figurines and collectibles
Additionally, youngsters were also very keen on spending time in parks and everyday healing spaces. Simply put, Soul Zhang Lu’s report reveals that emotional consumption is a consumer trend that cannot be ignored and that it isn’t a single behavior but a constellation of practices that provide grounding in turbulent lives.
In fact, so strong is the trend of emotional consumption that nearly 90% of young survey respondents said that they have already paid for emotional value, while about 40% identified themselves as high-frequency consumers.
Also, Soul Zhang Lu’s study highlights the fact that emotional value spending isn’t a fleeting trend. The very fact that Gen Z relies on these purchases for mental health benefits, motivation, and resilience turns emotional value into a sustainable energy source that will likely continue to influence Gen Z’s consumer behavior for years to come.
Moreover, income isn’t always the driver when it comes to emotional value purchases. For instance, Soul Zhang Lu’s report revealed that 1 in 4 individuals who buy emotionally rewarding products/experiences have ≤5,000 RMB monthly disposable income. Furthermore, ordinary employees (20.8%) and freelancers (18.3%) represent the largest groups of this consumer demographic. In other words, emotional consumption cuts across income and occupation.
So, in a nutshell, this study from Soul Zhang Lu suggests that emotional consumption has gone from being a fringe phenomenon to a mainstream mode of navigating modern life. Above all, the trend is here to stay since it is at once a coping mechanism, a social statement, and a means of identity formation for Gen Z.
