Poshmark is Throwing a Virtual Shopping Party for Gen Z

With young shoppers increasingly seeking more social shopping experiences across digital and physical channels, Poshmark is turning to virtual, live events to generate enthusiasm and engagement.

The resale marketplace announced Thursday (June 13) the launch of Posh Party LIVE, a real-time virtual event centered on a given theme — the company cited the examples of “Summer Neutrals” and “Luxury Goods” — that aims to make the shopping experience more social.

In an interview with PYMNTS, Poshmark Vice President of Product Management Vanessa Wong discussed how the launch, which is an extension of the marketplace’s existing Posh Shows, satisfies users’ demand for more personal connections with the buying experience.

“People are continually looking to get closer to the users,” Wong said. “Instead of just browsing a closet, it’s like, ‘How do I really connect with a seller?’ A seller has a persona, has different styling techniques. So, what we see is that Posh Shows allows that deeper connection with a seller.”

Posh Parties also can enable a sense of community among sellers, with event hosts able to use them to sell not only their own items but also those of others, she said.

Overall, shopping is becoming an increasingly social experience among younger generations. Take, for instance, the rise of social media commerce. Background research for PYMNTS Intelligence’s “Tracking the Digital Payments Takeover: Monetizing Social Media” revealed that as of May 2023, 68% of Generation Z consumers browsed for and/or read reviews of products on social media. Plus, 22% of consumers in this generation made purchases through social media platforms, a greater share than any other generation. Millennials, too, have shown high adoption of social commerce, at 64% and 22%, respectively.

The demand for social retail experiences translates to in-person commerce as well, with data showing that Gen Z likes to go to the mall in search of more interpersonally connected shopping options.

When given the option to have these more social shopping experiences, it seems consumers keep coming back, with Wong noting that she has been surprised by “how addictive” Posh Parties have been for customers. Forty percent of consumers who have made purchases via Posh Shows become repeat customers, buying additional products from the host.

Resale customers specifically seek out social shopping experiences, be it through their in-person communities or online. The “Consumers Shop Secondhand Stores as Often as Other Retail” edition of the PYMNTS Intelligence “Consumer Inflation Sentiment Report” series revealed that among the 43% of consumers who made secondhand purchases last year, 52% bought clothing. For Gen Z, peer-to-peer sales were the most popular channel for secondhand purchasing, while millennial secondhand shoppers most commonly turned to social media.

The rise of more social buying experiences opens loyalty-building opportunities for sellers who can shape those connections with shoppers virtually.

“We’ve seen this high engagement,” Wong said. “Once you find a seller you’re really engaged with, you buy from them, but also you follow that host and you get notifications. Each of these hosts developed this following as a result of their viewers watching the show since it’s so easy to engage.”

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