Most wanted e-commerce innovations in Germany 2023, by generation

According to a 2023 survey, the most wanted e-commerce innovation amongst German consumers was enhanced frictionless payment methods on average, an innovation which appealed to 61 percent of Baby Boomers and more than half of both Millennials and Gen X. Of the four generational cohorts surveyed, Gen Z and Millennials were the biggest fans of virtual and augmented reality, a technological innovation that 31 and 39 percent of respondents respectively would like to try out.

A virtual shopping experience

Augmented reality, otherwise known as AR, enables virtual product viewing when online shopping. By 2025, it is expected that the share of Gen Z consumers in Germany who will have used AR when buying products online will be over 30 percent.

The beauty of augmented reality

As an online shopping tool, augmented reality has many uses. For example, seeing what a piece of furniture looks like inside one’s home, or trying on new makeup/hair colors. In a 2022 global survey on interest in augmented reality, the latter use of AR was said to be appealing by nine out of ten Gen Z respondents and nearly the same number of Millennials. In Germany, this can be seen as the market for beauty tech is expected to grow substantially in the years to come.