Gen Z reshapes Africa’s retail future, report

Despite the toughest consumer climate in years, Africa’s digital-first Gen Z is powering a retail transformation that blends online discovery with hyper-local fulfilment, according to BCG’s new report 119 Million Reasons for Optimism.

Surveying 6,000 consumers across Egypt, Morocco, Ethiopia, Nigeria, South Africa, and Kenya, BCG found sentiment at its lowest (-23%) since 2018, with most consumers concerned about finances. Yet Gen Z stands out: 70% expect their financial situation to improve within a year, allocating more spend to aspiration-led purchases and showing stronger preference for global brands.

With 119 million Gen Z consumers (18% of population) rising to 167 million by 2050, their optimism and digital fluency are accelerating a shift to hybrid retail. Up to 63% browse products digitally, 30% cite social media as a primary purchase driver, and the rapid rise in mobile money and fintech adoption is enabling young Africans to lead in credit uptake, with 42% already using credit cards.

Gen Z is reshaping demand without compromising on quality—only 8% would downgrade food quality to save money—and is driving the emergence of “click-and-mortar” commerce, illustrated by Kenya’s 250,000 digitally-enabled dukas and South Africa’s network of smart delivery systems.

Winning strategies for brands include:

Balancing affordability with aspiration
Treating social platforms as commerce channels
Enabling digital payments and micro-credit responsibly
Connecting online discovery with local fulfilment
Designing hybrid, community-anchored retail experiences

Vishakha Chopra, Project leader, BCG: “The opportunity isn’t a sudden boom. It’s to earn Gen Z’s loyalty now—as they grow into economic influence.”

The full report can be accessed here

www.bcg.com

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