Brands are racing to win Gen Z consumers—a cohort of young shoppers expected to control $12 trillion in spending power by 2030, according to a joint report from research firms GfK, NielsenIQ, and World Data Lab.
Midway through 2025, it’s clear some brands have excelled at capturing Gen Z’s dollars, while others have a lot of catching up to do, according to new data from brand tracking platform Tracksuit.
Between January 1st and June 1st, purchase consideration for Coca-Cola among U.S. consumers aged 18-24 increased from 56% to 71%. Coke’s 15-point jump was larger than any other recorded for Gen Z adults in the same age range.
In March, Coca-Cola relaunched its famous “Share A Coke” campaign with a focus on connection and personalized experiences to better reach Gen Z.
The dating app Hinge, which recently rethought its marketing message to speak to dating app-weary youths, has also seen its purchase consideration score rise 14 percentage points during the same period.
“The key to growing consideration lies in building familiarity, which is achieved through consistency, distinctiveness, and building emotional connections,” said Matt Herbert, co-founder and CCO of Tracksuit. “Brands like Hinge, which leverages Gen Z’s craving for authenticity by being regarded as an app for more serious dating, and Olipop, which aligns with wellness trends through its healthier beverage offering, illustrate how this can be done effectively.”
Not all brands are having a strong 2025.
Instant ramen noodles brand Maruchan has seen purchase consideration levels among young shoppers drop 16 percentage points—from 70% to 54%—making it one of the year’s biggest decliners. The decrease comes at a time when newcomers positioned as healthier alternatives are trying to stir up the ramen market.
Even though Maruchan stumbled throughout the first half of the year, Gen Z is still willing to buy the brand: With a purchase consideration score of 54%, it remains higher than many of the top brands experiencing growth.
While a change in seasons might influence which brands are rising and falling with Gen Z in 2025 so far, Tracksuit’s Herbert said most brands can only persuade about half of consumers to move down the marketing funnel from awareness to purchase consideration.
