Gen Z embraces 'little treats' trend despite risks of overspending

Kailyn Rhone

 

The last thing Naomi Barrales needed was a 30-minute train delay. She had a two-hour commute home to central New Jersey ahead of her. To kill time, she decided to treat herself to two vegan birthday cake cookies. 

It became a ritual. Whenever Barrales, a 25-year-old marketing associate for a fashion label, had a good day at work, like receiving a compliment from her boss or nailing a presentation, she treated herself to the same cookies. Later, she added a $1.50 Poppi drink to her list of sweet treats. Even if the office vending machine was out of Poppi and the local deli charged double, she didn’t mind, she said, as she deserved it. “It’s something that I can just have and not think about,” Barrales said. “I don’t have to pinch my pennies.” 

She and many others in Generation Z have embraced “treat culture,” the habit of indulging in small luxuries, like a $12 jumbo-size coffee, a $5 baked dessert or a $30 key-ring doll called the Labubu, to reward themselves or practice self-care, even if the treats are outside their budgets. Although many Gen Z-ers do not feel financially secure, more than half say they buy themselves a small treat at least once a week, according to a new survey of nearly 1,000 Gen Z adults from Bank of America’s Better Money Habits team. 

The concept of using treats to cope or celebrate gained pop culture traction in 2011 with a television episode of “Parks and Recreation” in which characters celebrated a day of pampering with the motto “Treat Yo Self.” 

What sets Gen Z-ers apart from generations before them is how they have built an online community around the tradition, promoting it on their social feeds as a way to care for their mental health during uncertain times. On TikTok, they have shared their latest “little treat” hauls after failing an exam or doing chores, or just to show off conspicuous consumption. 

With rising costs, a shaky job market and financial milestones feeling out of reach for many young adults, small purchases offer Gen Z a temporary sense of control or indulgence, Dorsey said. 

“If I finished my own schooling and wasn’t getting anywhere in the work force, I would bring myself out for a treat as well,” said Gregory Stoller, a professor at Boston University’s Questrom School of Business. 

But while these treats can offer quick hits of joy, they also could lead to overspending if budgets are not properly managed. After about a month of treating herself three times a week, Barrales, the marketing associate, noticed her checking account was around $50 lower than usual. It was enough to ring alarm bells for her. “At first, it was harmless... But it compounds, and that’s when it starts eating into my finances,” she said. 

Holly O’Neill, president of consumer, retail and preferred at Bank of America, recommends that anyone participating in treat culture consider setting a realistic budget or finding more sustainable alternatives, like borrowing a book from a library, so it doesn’t become impulsive or lead to overspending.