Teens and the Consumer Culture: Why Brand Names Matter so Much

From designer clothes of the wealthy, to typical name brands of the middle class, it seems very important to the consumer to purchase these items, and especially true for teens. Why is this so? Is it best quality? Is it to fit in with society? Is it for our own personal pride? I am curious why my teen won't purchase a pair of shorts this summer unless it's the "right" brand. Why aren't other brands good enough? They cost the same, so why does it have to be skate board brand? It boggles my mind that he has only one pair of shorts for the entire summer, it is 85 degrees outside, and yet he refuses to wear any other brand than that of a skate company. I have discovered a few reasons behind why brand name products so important to teens, and hopefully have a better understanding of my teen's desire for certain clothing.

One major contributing factor to the teen shopping and brand name explosion is that teens have more money today than previous generations. I remember having to get a summer job just to be able to pay for the things I wanted throughout my school year, such as a year book. In today's society parents are making more money and in turn buying more products for their children. As one article stated regarding the mall and teen girls, some "teenage girls often use mall excursions with friends to scout for purchases that are later made with mom's credit card." Along with parents making more money, in generations past parents didn't buy items for children in the capacity they do today, therefore lending to the idea that perhaps parents today are over compensating for their own childhood. Parents want their children to have more and better things then they had when they were growing up. However, many parents also want their children to become responsible with money so when the teen reaches young adulthood they don't get themselves into financial trouble.

A couple of ways parents give teens the responsibility of spending is via allowance, and pre-paid debit cards. Having an allowance is an "old school" idea that has been somewhat modified in today's teen generation. In my childhood any allowance I received, which was minimal, was tied to chores. I would have to weed an entire flower bed just to make five dollars. Many teens today are simply given a pre-set amount of money without chores being attached. Some may argue that this is teaching teens that they get something for nothing; others say it's good sense to teach financial responsibility because once their money is gone then it's gone, and the teen must learn to budget. The pre-paid debit card is a new idea presented by banks for parents to feel more secure regarding their teen's spending. These debit cards can also be used for online shopping which is a growing industry among teens. The MyPlash pre-paid debit card boasts to parents of providing their teens with financial responsibility by allowing the teen to make their own purchase choices while allowing a helicopter parenting approach of keeping tabs on their spending. It also presents to parents security, and convenience. All of these reasons give teens more money and presents the concept that they can afford name brand items which increases the viability of teens as a powerful consumer. As manufacturers know that teens are becoming a more powerful consumer they lean towards advertising to teens via magazines, television, and mall retail stores.

According to the Kaiser Foundation teen magazine subscriptions are up in circulation tremendously since 1990 and bring in an estimated $175 billion dollars annually. With this kind of interest, company advertisers know that placing ads in teen magazines can boost sales and even start trends. Product placements in movies and television are another way to make an ordinary product become cool to have. Such as, the Converse high top court shoes Will Smith wore in iRobot. Interestingly enough I saw a sales ad today with those same Converse court shoes all over the cover and the statement of, "I gotta have my Converse!" This type of advertising tells teens that they need that product. Mall store windows are another way to advertise to teens. A retail store like Old Navy may display the board shorts to teen males who surf or skate board, while the female side shoes a hip beach girls selection. Along with having more funds available, and advertising towards teens, there is a strong sense of belonging to a specific social grouping and an expression of oneself.

According to the article in the San Jose Mosaic paper, "Teens admit that the desire to fit in, as well as look good, can lead to expensive habits. "Clothing is more or less an expression of one's personality," said Jeffrey Ying, 17, of Fremont." In a discussion with my 15 yr old son today I found that teens are now classifying themselves beyond the typical groups I had growing up. I noticed a few kids in a sandwich shop that my son used to hang out with when we first relocated to our town. I asked my son why he didn't hang out, or do anything, with them any more. He explained to me that, "they are in a different social group than I am." I was surprised. Social grouping? He went on to explain that they are brainier, don't like skate boarding, and don't care what they wear. So apparently in today's teendom one must wear the style of clothing that associates them with a specific social group that they belong. This idea fits into what Jeff Ying was expressing in the article regarding clothing fitting a personality.

Continuing with the thought pattern of clothing being an expression of personality is the idea that one can "prove" themselves worthy to belong to a particular group via peer pressure. If one can afford the particular brand names then they in a sense belong to that group. By my son wearing $45-60 skater labeled shorts then he can feel and believe that he truly belongs with the rest of the skater social group. When I mentioned a different brand label of shorts then what my son was asking for, though still skater shorts, he stated quite ghastly, "that's what all the wanna be skaters wear! I am not wearing those." A teen being able to wear the more expensive label lines shows to their peers that they are worthy of being with them. The status symbols of brand named labels have metamorphosed into separating teens into various social classes. This is more advanced than when I was growing up with the nerds, the jocks, and the preppies; today's teen is socially divided and grouped even more so than when I was a teen in the 70's and 80's. Perhaps this is why there is such a drive to fit in to where they feel they belong, with those who they are comfortable.

Teens want the name brand labels more today because they have more funds to spend on such items than previous generations, they have more spending options available to them, and advertisers are marketing more and more to teens as powerful consumers. However, teens are still kids and in the end what I found from my son was although he prefers certain brand name clothing, as a way to demonstrate to his peers who he is, he will still wear a close second brand rather than go without. And who knows, perhaps he will be the one to start the next trend of acceptable clothing for skaters.