Talk to anyone in retail today and you’ll hear the same refrain: Gen-Z shoppers are craving more in-person retail experiences. Physical stores are back, discovery is back, and shopping as a social activity is back. But we also hear from our customers regularly that the generation demanding richer, more human in-store interactions is the same one struggling to deliver them. The irony is striking—and it’s becoming one of the biggest underreported challenges facing retailers.

Gen Z Consumers Want Connection, Not Just Convenience

Despite growing up online, Gen Z is driving the continued importance of physical retail. According to a survey by Adyen, almost three-quarters of Gen Z shop in-person at least once a week, and the majority of them consider it an experience. A similar study from L.E.K. Consulting found that nearly two-thirds of Gen Z prefer in-store shopping to e-comm, and they are more eager for unique in-store experiences than any generation before. As Gen-Z recenters the retail focus on stores, they are seeking the personal, meaningful service that only people can provide.

But…that expectation is running head-first into the reality of the Gen Z workforce.

 
Gen Z Associates Are Lacking the Engagement Skills Their Peers Expect

It is just one heartbreaking consequence of what the COVID-19 pandemic wrought, but retailers across categories—from apparel to electronics to beauty—tell us the same thing: their younger employees struggle with in-person interactions.

It’s not a character flaw. It’s a coaching gap. Consider a study by Axonify that found that 77% of frontline Gen Z workers felt that insufficient job-specific skills and training hindered their ability to complete tasks effectively. More disappointing, 62% felt overwhelmed and anxious because of that skills gap; 55% felt embarrassed; 14% considered quitting. Indeed, a “frontline generational skills-gap” in retail is manifesting itself everywhere, with employees spending an average of 14 hours per week helping colleagues compensate for knowledge gaps, instead of focusing on their own work.

The Stakes Have Never Been Higher

This skill gap isn’t just an HR issue. It’s an economic one. As any retailer can tell you, underwhelming associate-customer interactions directly impact:

• Conversion: Associates miss opportunities to guide and excite.

• Average basket size: Underdeveloped connections leave customers less likely to trust add-on recommendations.

• Customer loyalty: Disappointing experiences hurt long-term brand relationships.

• Brand perception: Experience inconsistency hurts brand reliability — and Gen Z notices.

Gen Z is already a substantial portion of both the consumer base and the workforce. Some estimates have them growing to 30% of the workforce by 2030. Given that, failing to bridge this gap means retailers will feel the effect across every KPI that matters.

 
Why Traditional Retail Operations Support Isn’t the Way

A report by McKinsey & Company indicates that in U.S. retail frontline roles, lack of career development is one of the strongest attrition triggers. And yet, most retailers still rely on the same support tools they have for decades:

• Static e-learning modules

• Occasional manager feedback

• Mystery shoppers

These tools do not provide the one thing Gen Z associates lack: real practice with real conversations backed by real feedback.

You can’t build conversational confidence in a one-time module. You build it through repetition, coaching, and real practice. And the data backs that up: the earlier training/disconnect stats show just how insufficient the current training methods are. Meanwhile, managers and trainers are stretched thin—especially in high-turnover frontline contexts.

 
Where Technology Can Help Bridge the Experience Gap

In starting Ethosphere, we set out to give frontline retail teams superpowers. We did not know just how timely and vital our product would be. We are meeting a crisis moment for retailers with technology that provides coaching that helps associates:

• Ask better questions

• Handle objections with confidence

• Recommend products effectively

• Build rapport authentically

• Learn from their own work—just like athletes review game film

Gen Z associates do not lack willingness. They want to be good. The data shows they feel unsupported when they don’t have coaching that builds confidence. What they lack is structured, consistent, and personalized feedback. Ethosphere is leveraging technology to finally deliver that at scale.

 
The Way Forward: Aligning Gen Z’s Expectations with Their Capabilities

The solution isn’t to lower expectations for associates, or the quality of in-store experiences—it’s to raise the level of support we give the associates delivering them. Retailers that win the next decade will:

1. Recognize conversation as a skill that can be learned, not an innate trait.

2. Measure what actually happens between associates and customers (not just hours worked or transactions).

3. Coach continuously, not just during onboarding and when managers have time to shadow.

4. Use AI to augment and grow managers, not replace them.

5. Build Gen Z associates into confident in-person communicators capable of delivering the experiences that their Gen Z peers seek.

Gen Z shoppers want human connection, and retailers should embrace that as a strategic opportunity. With the right tools, the very generation struggling to deliver great experiences today can become the generation that defines the future of excellent retail service.