Millennials love Minimalism. But Gen Z takes It to the MAX

The internet has spoken: maximalism 👏  is 👏  in! 👏

Gen Z is coming into their own as trendsetters. And after being cooped up for two formative years, they don’t see any problem with celebrating personality and going big. 

But that doesn’t mean you should toss out your IKEA furniture yet (if it hasn’t already broken). Minimalism — the darling of millennials — will always be here to stay. And the most adept brands will market both styles to their respective audiences. 

Take Crocs. Their top seller is the simple Classic Croc, and they know it. Yet they still make headlines with wild collabs featuring Balenciaga and Diplo. We stan Crocs Lucky Charms and we aren’t afraid to say it! 💅🤷‍♀️

VOCABULARY: 

• Minimalism:  The dominant aesthetic of the 2010s, defined by the idea that less is more. Minimalists rid themselves of excess items and use only the things they need. From Marie Kondo to documentaries about Helvetica, the style became a millennial favorite.
  

• Maximalism: An aesthetic all about “more is more” by combining shapes, colors, tones, and textures to create something vibrant, attention-grabbing, and over-the-top. Fueled by childhood nostalgia for the 2000s and pandemic fatigue, Gen Z is leading the maximalist charge.
  
  

WHAT’S UP ⬆️:
Maximalism is rising as a brand positioning strategy thanks to demands from Gen Z consumers, even as millennials still favor minimalism. Some brands are incorporating both aesthetics into their marketing, while others are taking sides.

The Maximalists 

• Airbnb: The homestay platform is collaborating with TikTok, with the former measuring the popularity of design hashtags and connecting them to lodging descriptions on the latter. Maximalist styles like cottagecore, grand millennial, and eclectic nostalgic (and, yes, “maximalism” itself) are among the top hashtags identified.
  

• Half Magic: The maximalist fashion in HBO’s Euphoria has inspired countless beauty tutorials and TikTok trends. In fact, it’s become so influential that Euphoria makeup artist Donni Davi has launched her own brand with entertainment company A24 and the creators of the show.

The Minimalists 

• The Outset: This Scarlett Johansson-backed skincare venture focuses its branding on minimalist designs, with plain white packages that hold only the brand's name and a small description in black letters. The goal? To be as widely inclusive as possible. While most skincare brands design for a specific market, the Outset wants to be free of the restrictions of a narrow brand identity.
  

• Casper Sleep: For years, the original bed-in-a-box company has prided itself on appealing “to those who hate mattress shopping” by offering a one-size-fits all model for its mattresses and pillows. You can’t argue that they were on to something: there are now over 175 online mattress companies — with most aping the same minimalist marketing style as Casper, if not their minimalist approach to the product itself.
  
  

WHAT’S DOWN ⬇️:
Just because maximalism is on the rise doesn’t mean minimalism is going anywhere. What’s really down is stagnation. As we (again) take steps back to normalcy, people are craving change and rebirth. They want innovation and attention grabbers.

WHAT’S NEXT ➡️:

D Disruption	Time is a flat circle in the world of fashion. 2010s minimalism arose from the Great Recession, which made the flashiness of the aughts — gold chains, velour tracksuits, McMansions — both tasteless and out of reach for the average person. We’re now seeing the cultural pendulum inevitably swing back, led by the rise of Gen Z over millennials as the trendsetting generation.
I Innovation	Here’s a paradox: despite all the minimalist marketing, when it comes to actual products, the mantra is usually still more is better. But real innovation sometimes means doing less is better.  Budget consumers are raving over Apple’s new $430 iPhone, for example. And then there’s the Light Phone II, an “anti-smartphone” that only texts and calls. That means no access to apps, email, or internet — the perfect phone for a minimalist seeking to unplug.
P Polarization	Generations tend to fight over aesthetic preferences, and the debate between minimalism vs. maximalism is no different. We can expect this argument to light up many an angry Twitter thread for years to come.
S Stickiness	Reading between the lines here, the trend we’re really seeing is a desire for variety. Even the biggest minimalism stans have to admit that the style has kind of taken over everything, from restaurants to ads to Kim Kardashian’s weird house. In the end, what’s going to stick is contrast — whether that’s through the excess of maximalism or its coexistence with minimalism.
S Social Impact	Sustainability is a big draw of minimalism in principle — although in practice, it doesn't always live up to the lifestyle. We don’t know how or whether a cultural shift toward maximalism will affect the environment, but with so little time left to prevent irreversible climate change, its long-term social impact could be bigger than anything we’ve talked about here before.