How brands speak to teens

" It's too fashionable ! ” raves Camille, 11-year-old schoolgirl, admiring the brand new “aaucarré” sweatshirt of Victoire, 12 years old. Without advertising or e-shop, this small French brand launched by a maths student - hence its name - has become in a few weeks the uniform of hundreds of pre-teens. With two micro-boutiques (23, rue Vaneau, Paris-7th and 15, rue Beauregard, Paris-2nd), it has bet on its Instagram community: more than 26,000 subscribers display their logo sweatshirts and caps, making the mouth, even a finger of honor. Welcome to the teen fashion planet! They are between 10 and 16 years old and juggle clothes even faster than their millennial elders. Their favorite brands: Carhartt or Supreme, Local Heroes or Thrasher, the French Homies from Paris, or those more mainstream like ASOS and Weekday - H&M's latest label. They copy the look of their band or star Instagrammers, from Bella Hadid to Lukas Ionesco. “In the 1980s, the well-dressed guy watched MTV clips on cable, recalls Michael Dupouy, of the communication agency La MJC, founder, with Pedro Winter, of the Club 75 brand. lesser look spotted on a Los Angeles rapper is spreading at high speed on social networks. In a sense, fashion has become more democratic. "For Michel Fize, author of" My teenager in 100 questions "(Éd. Eyrolles): "Social networks have only accelerated the waltz of fashionable brands but the psychological springs remain the same. In adolescence, clothes, jewellery, tattoos are the means of asserting one's identity. »

The dream of all brands? Make these teenagers loyal customers. Tracking them, seducing them, catching them in their nets is an immense task. These new marketing targets are mobile and heterogeneous even if all, or almost all, have their eyes riveted on their Smartphone. American Apparel, which was intended for them, has filed for bankruptcy and is looking for a new lease of life, while Quiksilver has not gone far. “We observe a panic of brands, recognizes Eric Briones, consultant and co-author of 'Generation Y and luxury' (Éd. Dunod), yesterday's advertising revenues do not affect the younger generation. The claws must reinvent themselves urgently...” Boosted by Instagram images or nostalgic TV series like “Stranger Things” or “The Get Down”, an impressive number of teenagers have developed a sharp stylistic culture. Tallulah, 18, a fan of the rock looks of the artist Sita Abellan and those of the rapper Princess Nokia, confirms: “I like skate shoes from the 2000s like the seventies spirit of the latest Gucci collections. But I don't have the budget, so I hunt for unique pieces in thrift stores. I couldn't see myself spending astronomical sums on clothes that everyone else wears. »

Fashion victims? Especially not. "Consumers", certainly. No more brand with a one-way message, young people want to dialogue with creators, interact, even co-create. Megalos? Proud? "No, teenagers simply see the world horizontally, among peers," explains Nathalie Rozborski, of the NellyRodi trend agency. They refuse to be submitted to the marketing directors: they are the marketing directors. "Fashion is a game," confirms Eric Briones. They have the culture of participation, of open source. Like when Adidas offers via Snapchat to color its Neo basketball in order to market the most creative. It hits! They love being asked their opinion. Otherwise, they get bored and don't buy! Some brands rely directly on teens to grow through Instagram. This is the case of Rad, who does not have a physical store but an account filled with photos of teenagers. By not forgetting to tag the label, they see their photo “reposted” and their number of followers climb (like the brand, which displays more than 471,000). “Rad is made by young people for young people. They identify with these images and enter into a community,” says Jeanne Crehange, the brand's stylist.

Luxury is also trying to get in tune with this potential clientele. Gucci succeeded in its digital transformation in two years by focusing on communication integrating art, history and pop culture. In February, the Italian brand Fendi launched F is For..., a platform reserved for teenagers, who express themselves on subjects relating to music, fashion and lifestyle. To present its fall-winter 2017 collection, Dolce & Gabbana chose 49 young influencers (who have a lot of followers). Among them: the model Lucky Blue Smith (3.1 million), Presley Gerber, son of Cindy Crawford (360,000), or Sarah Snyder, ex of Jaden Smith, the son of actor Will Smith (1.4 million) . More pragmatic, more informed, these new buyers sometimes border on rebellion against consumerism. “Teenagers are no longer naive at all and we can no longer lie to them”, specify Delphine de Canecaude and Nadège Winter, founders of Twenty, a community media for 16-25 year olds. Born with the crisis and global warming, “generation Z” (those under 22) are very committed to environmental and societal issues. Ideas embodied by teenage activists like Willow Smith, sister of Jaden Smith, one of the new faces of Chanel who, at 16, showed amazing maturity and posted feminist messages on Instagram. Similarly, 19-year-old Paris Jackson (daughter of Michael Jackson and muse Calvin Klein), explains without complexes in an interview with "iD" magazine published at the beginning of August that she would like to change the standards of beauty, that she herself has stretch marks and cellulite and is very susceptible to environmental cause.

THE NEW ICONS

Princess Nokia At 25, the feminist rapper cultivates a style that is as streety as it is tangy.

Sasha Lane The 'American Honey' actress poses for Vuitton and shows off her dreadlocks.

Millie Bobby Brown Noticed in "Stranger Things", at 15, she campaigns against harassment.

Parisian Angèle Metzger easily mixes rock and vintage pieces on Instagram.

Darth_Bador British model with pierced nose encourages women to accept themselves.