Why Nike, Cotton On and Supre get the big tick this year.
Nike, Cotton On and Supre are some of the big winners in a new report providing insights into fashion and retail purchases of Australia's Gen Y.
The Lifelounge Sweeney Report - previously the Urban Market Research report - is undertaken quarterly and involves comprehensive interviews with 100 16-30 year olds across Australia.
Sports brand Nike took the lead as favourite clothing brand this quarter, taking the lead from embattled surfwear brand Billabong.
In March 2013, Billabong held 17 per cent of votes to Nike's 13 per cent.
In the September 2013 polling, Billabong slipped to 10 per cent while Nike remained at 13 per cent.
Surf brands Quiksilver and Rip Curl also declined in favour.
The report found females were driving the 'disposable' fashion trend, with Cotton On (14 per cent) and Supre (10 per cent) leading the way in favoured brands.
Discount department store Target remained the most consistently top performing brand in this category.
Major brand chains are still the most preferred way to shop for Australian youth, with 42 per cent claiming their last purchase was bought via a chain store.
Independent stores once accounted for 34 per cent of last clothing purchases in 2009, but suffered massive declines to just 18 per cent in 2013.
Lifeloung CEO Dion Appel said the climate had changed, with three in ten purchases also being made online.
"Youth have grown up in an instantaneous world where they don't wait for anything. Department stores have variety and are favoured but look out - this won't last forever as online stores start to nail same day delivery."
Cost and availability were the main drivers for females, with 53 per cent listing this as a priority this year compared to 41 per cent in 2011.
Those aged 25 - 30 were more likely to consider the designer (16 per cent) and origin (11 per cent) as important compared to their younger counterparts.