Give me new, brand new, say youth

Shweta Aggarwal (18) has a tough choice to make. Her monthly allowance can either buy her a book or the latest shade of nude brown lipstick. A self-confessed, “book worm� this time round Shweta is thinking lips. “I really love reading but nude brown is the latest rage. All my friends have the shade and I just want to try it out,� she spells out her intent.
Amanjot Singh (21) is more pragmatic. Respecting his innate need to experience new deodorants and after-shave products, this MBA aspirant has come up with the perfect budget tip.
“Forgo eating out with friends and buying the latest CDs instead buy a new after-shave every month.� Call it whatever, the kuch naya syndrome or the irresistible desire to be desirable, the fact is that city’s youth janta is always game for the latest, trendiest and the hippest! So much so that a large chunk of the pocket money goes in buying the latest cosmetic products. Whether the products really suit them is another matter.
For the moment, their mantra is anything will do as long as it’s new! Mamta Masih, beauty consultant, Ebony, Sector 9, says, “Youngsters like to keep themselves updated on the latest cosmetic products. They are willing to spend up to Rs 3,000 a month as long as they get what they want. Some of them enquire about the latest product and ask us to book it until they come up with the money.
Although some are aware about the range of cosmetics, for many just the fact that something new has been introduced is enough. It’s a new kind of buying psychology amongst the youth.�
Simmi, a city-based entrepreneur terms this as “flock mentality.� Narrating her younger sister’s tale who “is glued to beauty and fashion magazines�, Simmi says, “She just likes to stock the latest stuff. If its glitters today, it’ll be perfumes tomorrow. She does it because all her friends do it so that they can brag.� Lest you think only the fairer sex like all things new and happening, the boy brigade is also not far behind. “Men go crazy on after-shaves and deodorants.
Money is immaterial to them. They like to flaunt the latest stuff,� divulges a sales clerk at a departmental store. The point is - at what cost!
harneet_singh@indiatimes.com