MZ Generation Prefers 'Online Shopping Malls' First When Buying Clothes

2030 Clothing Information Channel No.1 Online Shopping Mall
Most Used Fashion Specialty Mall for Online Shopping

One in three consumers in their 20s and 30s reported that they first check online shopping malls when purchasing clothing.

According to a survey conducted by the Korea Federation of Textile Industries on clothing information channels on the 24th, 33.0% of respondents identified online shopping malls as their primary channel when buying clothes. Based on overall usage experience, 89.4% of respondents said they use online shopping malls, indicating that 9 out of 10 consumers browse online shopping malls before purchasing clothing.

Following online shopping malls, many respondents said they obtain information through social media (18.6%), followed by portal sites (14.1%), online communities (12.1%), and offline permanent stores (8.0%). However, based on overall usage experience, portal sites (80.7%) showed a higher usage rate than social media (71.5%), which ranked second in the primary channel responses.

Looking at respondent characteristics, women (38.8%) generally preferred online shopping malls more than men (27.2%). By age group, 30s (36.0%) showed a higher preference for online shopping malls than 20s (30.0%). Conversely, more respondents in their 20s (22.2%) obtained information through social media compared to those in their 30s (15.0%).

There were also differences in information acquisition channels depending on the brand group purchased. Overall, online shopping malls had the highest utilization, but consumers purchasing well-known premium brands showed relatively higher use of online communities (16.0%) and were the only group to record double-digit responses (10.9%) for offline permanent store usage. On the other hand, consumers who mainly purchase mass-produced brand products used social media (26.4%) and portal sites (18.9%) relatively more.

Among customers using online shopping malls, 40.4% said they primarily use fashion specialty malls, followed by open markets (20.6%), brand official online malls (19.5%), general malls (13.5%), and overseas direct purchase malls (6.0%). Meanwhile, consumers who actively purchase after discovering a favorite brand tend to use brand official malls more actively than open markets, second only to fashion specialty malls.

A representative from the Korea Federation of Textile Industries explained, "Consumers who actively try to purchase after discovering a new favorite brand are more likely to use official channels where additional information such as origin and material of the brand is relatively clearly specified."