Over the course of the 1960s, young people began to wield increasing financial clout as consumers. Various industries saw them as a target group for certain products, and companies adapted to their wants and needs. This was particularly true of the fashion industry. Sporting typical 1960s fashions and hairstyles, the young women featured below look with interest at the merchandise on offer at a Munich shop. On the one hand, the expanded consumer culture that accompanied Germans’ increasing prosperity fueled the modernization of society; on the other, however, it also worked to reinforce existing social and gender roles. Photo by Benno Wundshammer.