Coach x The Summer I Turned Pretty: A Brand Impact Study

Background

For Coach, featuring their bags on The Summer I Turned Pretty wasn’t simply brand placement. It was a chance to connect authentically with a passionate Gen Z audience whose emotional connection to the show mirrored the nostalgia, individuality, and self-expression Coach has always embodied.

Before the partnership, Coach’s customer base was predominantly female, skewing slightly older among Millennials and Gen X. Millennial women, in particular, have a nostalgic tie to the brand as it was the must-have bag during their high school and college years. But for Coach to continue to grow they need to resonate with Gen Z and Gen Alpha, which has become a key growth strategy. By sponsoring The Summer I Turned Pretty, Coach wasn’t just buying visibility. It was bridging generations, introducing itself to Gen Z while reminding millennials why Coach remains relevant.

Reaching a New Generation of Women

Traditional influencer and brand placement partnerships often rely on surface-level KPIs — likes, reach, viewership, etc. But these vanity metrics rarely translate into meaningful outcomes like audience growth, new-customer acquisition, or sales lift.

When The Summer I Turned Pretty returned to Amazon Prime in July 2025, it wasn’t just another season drop, it was a full-scale cultural moment. Fans dissected every outfit, lyric, and love triangle across TikTok, X, and Instagram.

In late July, just a few episodes into the season, the StatSocial team built an audience of those engaging with the show, related content and hashtags across social platforms. The social audience profile for The Summer I Turned Pretty was clear:

• • Overwhelmingly female
  • Predominantly 18–24
  • Highly active on TikTok
  • Strong interest in fashion and lifestyle brands

In other words, exactly the kind of audience that Coach was looking to attract.

Tracking How Coach Resonated Across The Summer I Turned Pretty Fandom

To determine whether this partnership truly moved the needle, StatSocial re-ran the same audience analysis three weeks later and compared it to the original audience it built in July.

Here’s what changed:

• • 25,000+ new people started engaging in the show and related content across major social platforms.
  • Those with an affinity for the show were 7× more likely to follow and engage with Coach than just three weeks earlier.

This wasn’t just a product placement; it was data-backed proof that the partnership boosted brand relevance among a younger, style-driven audience, while also remaining relevant among Millennials drawn to the timeless brand.

Quantifying Your Brand’s Audience Growth

While most of us will never agree on #TeamConard vs #TeamJeremiah, it’s safe to say that we can all likely agree that Coach successfully grew its audience among Gen Z women.

In today’s marketing landscape, the most powerful collaborations are rooted in audience understanding. With the StatSocial platform, we could view both audiences’–Coach and The Summer I Turned Pretty–interests, favorite creators, brand affinities, media preferences and more. This knowledge allows brands to understand how to reach their audience in impactful and authentic ways.

Learn more about StatSocial’s insights and measurement solutions or schedule an introductory call with a member of our team to get started.