Rampant consumerism is bad for the planet. ‘Underconsumption core’ offers an alternative.
The spotlight
In one of Julie George’s most popular TikTok videos from this past summer, she highlights some of the quality items she owns and cherishes — a few nice pieces of jewelry, a single pair of Ray-Bans, a nearly empty bottle of YSL perfume. It feels luxe and aspirational, like so many popular influencer videos do. But George’s video is not an attempt to get you to buy the items she shows off, or a celebration of the new. It’s an example of a different sort of trend that’s been sweeping social media — 2024’s new take on minimalism: “underconsumption core.”
“I first came across underconsumption as a trend on TikTok earlier this summer, maybe in June or July, and I immediately was like, ‘Wow, I have never related to something on social media as much as I do this,” said George, a finance manager and podcaster based in Austin, Texas, whose account is described as “Life in my 30s.”
George has always been active on social media, she said, to promote various side hustles like her podcast and a previous stint as a fitness-and-nutrition coach. But she was always put off by influencer culture. “It’s terrible for the environment — the constant stream of shopping hauls and discount codes and you need this and you need that,” she said.
When she discovered underconsumption, she felt like she had found her corner of the internet. Her July video, titled “underconsumption core as a luxury minimalist,” quickly racked up over 2 million views. Since then, she has continued to use her platform to share insights on how she embodies underconsumption and minimalism — a journey she has been on since her 20s, when frequent moves made her question the amount of stuff she had accumulated in her home. In another of her recent videos, George describes how underconsumption has “completely changed my life” — getting ready to move yet again, sorting and packing this time has been a breeze, she says.
Julie George’s first underconsumption video, which is captioned “Finally a trend I can get behind.” Julie George / TikTok
Underconsumption core (“core” being a suffix that essentially defines something as a trend, unified by a particular aesthetic or mindset) is generally about reusing and reducing. The videos are often set over soothing background music — something like Norah Jones’ “Don’t Know Why” or Billie Eilish’s “Birds of a Feather” — and show creators proudly displaying the longevity of their favorite possessions, or how they use up products to the last drop: a simple, still-cute tank top that’s been a wardrobe staple for years; a dinged-up reusable water bottle that’s the only one the poster needs; a makeup palette that has hit pan (aka been used to the bottom).
Creators see it as a counter to the prevailing norm of excessive consumption increasingly driven by social media — a norm that contributes to a slew of environmental ills, from the (increasingly low-quality) raw materials used to churn out a steady stream of new products, to the emissions from shipping items around the globe, to the waste that clogs landfills (or ends up burning in deserts).
On platforms like Youtube, TikTok, and Instagram, brands drive crazes over their latest gadgets or clothing styles, influencers show off massive shopping hauls, and the platforms themselves make it ridiculously easy to “shop now” with just a simple tap. (A few months ago, TikTok launched a partnership that allows users to make Amazon purchases without even leaving the app.)
Why underconsumption core, why now
Since it emerged this summer, the hashtag #underconsumption has garnered over 20,000 posts on TikTok (nowhere near as many as tags like #wicked or #chappellroan, but more than enough to mean it’s reached many mainstream users in some way). It’s the latest evolution of a movement rejecting overconsumption in favor of more mindful, budget-friendly, and sustainable habits — building on trends like de-influencing (the 2023 trend in which social media users explicitly rejected the idea of influencing, instead trying to convince their followers not to buy trendy new items), the no-buy year, and even Marie Kondo-inspired minimalism.
“I feel like I was on ground zero of underconsumption core,” said Jade Taylor, aka The Moda Mensch, a sustainable fashion content creator with over 120,000 followers on TikTok. “The way that I grew up was low-income, and I was always raised with the idea that sustainability was just something you did out of necessity.”
She views underconsumption as a far more accessible form of minimalism than some of its predecessors. It doesn’t require throwing a bunch of stuff away, or placing strict limits on oneself, or even achieving a certain aesthetic. Instead, it celebrates having sturdy items for a long time and using products up to the last drop — things that are easy on the wallet and also lighter on the planet.
Taylor (who uses both she and he pronouns) also has a theory as to why this particular trend emerged in the summer of 2024. “I think it was dually a response to the type of normalized overconsumption that influencers have pushed, with their marketing, but also due to climate anxiety and economic instability,” he said. “People are latching onto this idea because they’re becoming more cognizant of our effect on the environment as consumers and the role that influencer marketing played in that.”
Climate change ranks high as an area of concern for Gen Z and millennials, and they have continuously pushed for better sustainability practices from the companies they shop from. Over 50 percent of respondents to a 2024 Deloitte survey reported either avoiding fast fashion or intending to do so in the future.
In the same survey, the cost of living outranked climate as the number one concern for members of both generations. Around 30 percent of participants said that they did not feel financially secure, and nearly 60 percent live paycheck to paycheck.
“These flagrant displays of wealth are now insensitive and out of touch — because how are these influencers, you know, buying these $300 makeup hauls when so much of their audience can’t afford to keep a roof over their heads?” Taylor said.
What’s next
The financial draw of underconsumption core was echoed by others I spoke to, including Mia McGrath, a London-based TikToker who focuses on personal finance. “I think underconsumption and frugality have a lot in common,” McGrath said. “I think the cost of living and inflation has helped push this trend to the forefront.”
As a result, she said, she expects we may see some of the principles of underconsumption core reflected by producers as well, as brands contend with what consumers want and how much they’re willing to buy. “I think we will see more brands pushing timeless, versatile basics because people are being less experimental and more keen to invest in items that will be with them for the long term,” she said.
In an underconsumption video from July, Shelby Orme shows a cracked mirror that she salvaged from the trash and has used for years. Shelby Orme / TikTok
That is, if underconsumption core can avoid some of the pitfalls of minimalism trends that preceded it, which have either turned out to be a flash in the pan or have gotten hijacked by influencer culture as yet another way to promote a certain look or lifestyle that involves buying different types of products. This happened with de-influencing, Taylor said. Influencers were quick to jump on that trend, claiming to “de-influence” their followers away from certain viral products, instead recommending others that were purportedly better. “Influencers are kind of like the apex predators of the consumerism environment, so to speak,” she said. “They will always adapt.”
But some observers of this trend, and even some creators themselves, have also been quick to point out that “underconsumption” really looks a lot like a normal amount of consumption — not necessarily hardcore sustainability or minimalism, but more of a reality check for the ostentatious consumption that’s traditionally been a feature of influencer culture.
“We’re seeing into people’s closets and homes on social media so much more every day than our brains were ever meant to,” said Shelby Orme, a longtime sustainability advocate and content creator with around 275,000 TikTok followers. “I think people are just hungry for being told that other people are experiencing the same things they are, and that’s why the trend has become so big,” she said.
Orme thinks underconsumption core reflects a desire for more realism on social media — a mindset shift away from picture-perfect moments and unrealistic lifestyles. “It is good to see that there are other people out there living lives where they are not overconsuming all the time.”
Whatever the fate of the trend, Orme and others see it as part of a broader anti-consumerist movement that is sending a clear message: Most people don’t live like social media influencers. And with continued financial uncertainty and growing sustainability concerns, many are content with consuming less — not more.
“I like to hope that as these little trends pop off, that more and more people become aware of it and they have more conversations with their friends and family,” Orme said, “and we slowly see progress in every sector toward consuming in a way that will sustain human life on this planet — because ultimately that’s what this conversation comes down to.”
— Claire Elise Thompson
More exposure
- Read: more about underconsumption’s predecessors, de-influencing and no-buy challenges, and what producers can learn from these anti-consumerist movements (Vogue Business)
- Read: a piece exploring the conundrum of sustainability influencing (Grist)
- Read or listen to: an interview with the chief sustainability officer of Ikea, exploring the concept of “peak stuff” (NPR)
- Read: how the next administration’s tariff and tax policies could increase the price of goods from suppliers like Shein and Temu (The Washington Post)
- Watch: Brandy Hellville & The Cult of Fast Fashion, The True Cost, and The Minimalists: Less is Now, documentaries about fashion and consumption that the creators I spoke to cited as inspiration for their underconsumption journeys
A parting shot
Here’s my attempt at an underconsumption post for y’all. This simple little mug is my very favorite one. I got it at a Grist holiday exchange in 2019, re-gifted from a colleague who never used it, and I still use it almost every day. (It’s pictured here on my very cluttered desk, in the interest of full transparency — I am no minimalist! But working on this story has definitely inspired me to continue to think more carefully about the new things I add to my closet and my home.)
This story was originally published by Grist with the headline Rampant consumerism is bad for the planet. ‘Underconsumption core’ offers an alternative. on Nov 27, 2024.