Brands that targeted multiple generations in at least one campaign saw Media Impact Value jump 42 percent from fourth-quarter 2025 to first-quarter 2026. Brands with a less inclusive approach grew 36 percent. The figures come from a new report by Launchmetrics covering the top 20 brands across skin care, makeup, fragrance and hair care, which generated a combined $22.7 billion in MIV over the past year.

The gap is six percentage points. It is narrow. But it compounds at the scale of billions.

The report challenges the industry's Gen Z fixation. Launchmetrics' own clients have started to doubt it.

What did Launchmetrics actually find?

Krista Johnson, director of brand insights at Launchmetrics, said the shift is already underway in her client conversations. "Over the years, I've had a lot of conversations with brands about focusing on Gen Z," she said. "We've found that there's no longer 'we need a strategy based on a single generation, but multiple generations.'"

Her reasoning is financial, not cultural. "Millennials and Baby Boomers have twice the amount of disposable income as Gen Z does," Johnson said. "A lot of top beauty names have felt that they've over-invested in how much they're focusing on Gen Z, and they're trying to pivot now."

Note what the report does not say. It does not claim Gen Z is irrelevant. It does not publish the absolute MIV figures for each generation-strategy cohort, only growth rates. A 42 percent gain on a small base could still trail a 36 percent gain on a large one. Launchmetrics did not disclose which brands fell into each group.

Why is targeting three generations hard?

Johnson identified the core obstacle: distribution. The three generations do not share platforms, voices or content habits.

"They don't trust the same voices, and they don't always take in the same content," she said. "So brands who are very deliberate with this kind of strategy have seen a 6-percentage-point growth for those who have active multigenerational campaigns."

Deliberate is the operative word. Casting a wide net without adapting the message per channel does not appear to move the number. The report does not specify which channels carried the strongest multigenerational returns.

Which campaigns proved the case?

Two launches anchor the report.

MAC, "I Only Wear MAC." The top makeup brand by MIV hit its highest monthly peak of $116 million in September 2025, driven largely by this campaign. The cast spanned five decades: Kris Jenner, Kristen McMenamy, Cortisa Star, Bach Buquen, Kiko Mizuhara, Gabbriette, Doja Cat, Devyn Garcia and Amar Akway. Jenner alone drove $3.5 million in MIV in one week.

Lancôme Absolue Longevity MD. The May launch built its marketing around a single message: longevity is for everyone, every generation. Zoë Saldaña, Demi Moore and Ella McCutcheon fronted the campaign. It generated $6.5 million in MIV in a single month.

The two cases differ in scale by a factor of nearly 18. That suggests the tactic transfers across price tiers and categories, though Launchmetrics selected these examples itself.

What should brands take from the numbers?

The evidence points one way, with limits. Multigenerational campaigns outperformed on growth. Millennials and Boomers hold the spending power. Top brands admit they over-invested in Gen Z.

But the report covers only the top 20 brands. Those players can afford casts of nine celebrities spanning five decades. Whether the 42 percent lift holds for mid-size brands with a fraction of MAC's budget remains untested in this data.

Johnson's framing suggests the pivot will continue regardless: the brands that win will be those deliberate enough to speak to each generation where it actually listens.

By Grace Kim