QVC Taps Underpenetrated Gen X Social Commerce Opportunity

Amid merchants’ gold rush for young consumers’ social commerce spending, Qurate Retail is focusing on an often-overlooked demographic: Generation X and baby boomer women on social media and other digital platforms.

The company, which owns shopping channels QVC and HSN as well as other retail brands such as Garnet Hill and Ballard Designs, shared on a call discussing its second-quarter 2024 earnings results Thursday (Aug. 8) how QVC is targeting these older female shoppers.

Qurate Retail President and CEO David Rawlinson talked about how the live shopping brand’s Age of Possibility campaign, launched in the spring, has enabled it “to better serve the attractive demographic of women 50-plus,” collaborating with 50 celebrity women over the age of 50. The campaign has been successful at drawing digital engagement.

“Since launch, we have experienced strong initial reaction to this campaign, with 38 billion earned media impressions, 330,000 new Facebook community members, a nearly 200% increase in the number of QVC social followers and more than 1 million visits to [the] QVC campaign website,” Rawlinson said during the call. “We saw strong demand from Age-of-Possibility-related brands in Q2, with collective demand for the existing 12 brands up low-double-digits after the campaign launch.”

While consumers over 50 may be slower to adopt online shopping channels such as social commerce than their younger counterparts, they still represent a sizable opportunity. Supplemental research from the PYMNTS Intelligence study “Tracking the Digital Payments Takeover: Monetizing Social Media” found that 41% of Gen X consumers searched for products on social media, and 12% made a purchase.

The same goes for online shopping. The latest edition of PYMNTS Intelligence’s “How the World Does Digital” study, which was based on surveys of more than 67,000 consumers across 11 countries, found that 18% of Gen X consumers shop online each week, as do 10% of baby boomers.

Qurate’s results overall highlighted softness in certain retail categories as consumers continue to grapple with ongoing financial challenges. While revenue from jewelry surged by 12%, other categories such as beauty, apparel and accessories faced declines. This caution could be seen in the results of QxH, the segment of Qurate Retail comprised of QVC US and HSN.

“QxH revenue was pressured by macro factors, including inflation, as consumers continue to spend mostly on necessities and less on discretionary purchases,” Rawlinson said during the call.

Against that backdrop, the Cornerstone segment, which spans five home and apparel lifestyle brands, saw a 14% revenue decline attributed to continued softness in the home sector. Rawlinson noted that the prolonged slump in the housing market, combined with elevated mortgage rates, has dampened consumer enthusiasm for home-related purchases, further illustrating the impact of macroeconomic factors on spending behavior.

Amid a challenging economic landscape, consumers are demonstrating increased selectivity, with a focus on necessities and value-driven purchases. Qurate Retail’s revenue declined by 9% year over year, influenced by lower unit volumes at QxH and the softness impacting Cornerstone. Despite these top-line pressures, Qurate achieved a 4% increase in adjusted OIBDA, driven by margin improvements across its business units.

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