Nostalgia Marketing for Gen Z : A Complete Guide

Why nostalgic marketing?

Feel drawn to brands that remind you of childhood?

Miss a time before life was full of screens?

Gen Z was the last generation to experience childhood not immersed in technology. Rather growing up alongside its rapid rise. 

That’s why familiarity feels comforting, and why nostalgic brands feel more human. Think about the feeling safe, grounding, and soft like childhood. 

It reminds this generation of a time when everyone was under the same roof. It feels like their mothers favorite sweater in her thirties. Sounds like the morning news playing quietly in the background. 

Why Nostalgia Feels Like Comfort?

Gen Z lives in a world with more advanced technology than anyone could have predicted. They scroll constantly and experience the world through screens instead of physical moments. Gen Z craves a sense of emotional comfort that only nostalgia can bring.

Nostalgic marketing helps Gen Z feel connected. It builds familiarity, trust, and a sense of comfort between them and the brand.

Will look at why nostalgic marketing works so well with Gen Z, backed by real data.. As well as how brands have done this well and how you can use this strategy when marketing to Gen Z.   

Nostalgic Campaigns that have worked and haven't

Skims 2023 holiday campaign is a curated vintage chic aesthetic. Inspired by 1960’s magazine covers, the era that was known as the “Golden Year of Advertising”. 

Creativity was the game and the 1960’s delivered that. In the 1960's they realized that a unique selling point wasn't cutting it anymore. Brands needed more, they had to create an emotional impact.

The Skims winter campaign honors a beautiful decade of advertising design. Many skims shoppers never got to experience this era firsthand. But by using nostalgia they captured Gen Z’s attention.

The idea behind the Skims 2023 winter campaign is mixing retro-glam makeup style with standout Skims pieces. Shadows and filters were added to create an old-school, vintage look. This instantly gives consumers a nostalgic feel.

Jacquemus Valérie Bag Ad

Nostalgic marketing doesn’t always need to be loud to work.

Sometimes the most effective approach is quiet and emotional. Grounded around stories of where a brand came from. This Jacquemus Le Valerie campaign for his new bag was a beautiful dedication to his late mother. Showcasing the strong emotional pull storytelling can have on a consumer.

Set Active's latest drop featured a vintage inspired magazine spread. Demonstrating a throwback to early 2000’s editorial fashion. Through layout, muted tones, and typography it begins to feel like an old magazine. Instantly tapping into a “I’ve seen this before” memory cue Gen Z gravitates toward. 

When marketing to Gen Z it's important to prioritize creating a connection. Nostalgic content can have a 2x higher emotional response rate, helping you create a connection with gen z. Nostalgia can be the emotional pull that can directly turn into consumer action. 

Bad nostalgic marketing happens when a brand creates a retro-looking campaign but doesn’t add any real emotion to it.

Everything could look on trend, but without a story or feeling behind it, Gen Z won’t connect. Marketing to gen z works hand in hand with their emotions. Gen Z responds to nostalgia that feels real and lived-in, not just pretty decorations. 

When brands forget that, that emotional pull is what makes nostalgia work. Even the nicest-looking campaign can end up feeling flat

Connection and storytelling go a long way because Gen Z wants brands that feel real, not forced.

A 2024 - 2025 study found that digital marketing through storytelling creates much stronger brand loyalty. By catching a consumer's emotional attention. This is different from traditional marketing that only talks about product features.

Gen Z’s Homesick for a Time Before They Were Even Born

During times of uncertainty people tend to lean into emotional marketing more. Nostalgic campaigns rooted in emotional marketing tend to have higher engagement. 

A nostalgia campaign can be as simple as a brand bringing back its classic packaging. Or a brand capitalizing on 90’s inspired aesthetic for a campaign. by doing this you can instantly reunite customers with a brand they previously loved. 

Marketing to Gen Z through nostalgia offers this generation something they rarely get to feel. It gives this generation a sense of emotional safety.

When brands utilize this it helps create a bridge between the consumer and the brand. It creates positive recognition for the brand.

Nostalgia works so well because it reflects Gen Z’s childhood aesthetic, its part of how this generation expresses who they are. It's what builds their personal branding. When a company taps into that nostalgia with intention, Gen Z feels it. 

Numbers don’t lie

80% of consumers are drawn towards brands that use nostalgia, and Gen Z is leading the comeback. Half of Gen Z feels nostalgic for older forms of media, even if they didn’t grow up with them. Millennials follow closely behind at 47%.

Nostalgia isn’t just a trend for Gen Z. It’s an emotional shortcut. When you're marketing to Gen Z through nostalgia it can give brands the boost they need. It creates an opportunity for the brand to become more memorable.

62% of consumers said they’ve purchased items specifically because they evoke a sense of nostalgia.

Nostalgia isn’t new, but it’s experiencing a serious comeback.

Everything eventually cycles back, and the marketing world is doubling down on that simple truth: the past is trending. When marketing to Gen Z, it means recognizing that the past always finds its way back and this generation leans right into it.

Nostalgia campaigns have been around forever, but suddenly they’re everywhere you look.

When you’re driving and a familiar song comes on, or grocery shopping and you notice the background music. You're instantly taking back to a specific moment in time.

You remember it not just because you've heard those lyrics before or because of its catchy tune. But because of how a memory attached to the sound made you feel. 

That’s the power of nostalgic marketing, it taps into what you've forgotten but can still remember.

Brands need to understand that when marketing to Gen Z, this emotional pull matters. This generation deeply romanticizes earlier eras. Brands tapping into this nostalgia can make a campaign feel instantly more relatable and memorable.

✍️ Written by Ireland Mcginnis