Table of Contents
Executive summary
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- The market
- The economy
- Consumer spending
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- Figure 1: France: Consumer spending on clothing and footwear (incl. VAT), 2015-20 (f)
- Sector size and forecast
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- Figure 2: France: Specialist clothing retailers, sales (excluding VAT), 2014-20
- Channels of distribution
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- Figure 3: France: Estimated distribution of spending on clothing and footwear by channel, 2019
- Companies and brands
- Key metrics
- Market shares
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- Figure 4: France: Leading specialist clothing retailers, sales as % all spending on clothing and footwear, 2019
- Online
- The consumer
- How they shop for clothes
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- Figure 5: France: Channels used for buying clothes in the last 12 months, June 2020
- Where they shop for clothing
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- Figure 6: France: retailers used for buying clothing in the last 12 months, June 2020
- Clothes shopping behaviours relating to COVID-19
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- Figure 7: France: clothing related behavioural changes during the Covid-19 epidemic, June 2020
The Impact of COVID-19 on Clothing Retailing
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- Short, medium and long-term impact on the sector
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- Figure 8: Short, medium and long term impact of COVID-19 on Clothing retailing, October 2020
- Opportunities and threats
- COVID-19 brings online to the forefront
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- Figure 9: Decathlon’s ‘scan & go’ service, 2020
- Providing a feeling of shopping in-store from home
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- Figure 10: Gucci’s personalised virtual shopping, June 2020
- Athleisure versus formalwear
- How COVID-19 will reshape the industry
- Sustainability in fashion gains further relevance
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- Figure 11: Zalando announces ‘Pre Owned’ category, 2020
- Risk of lower profitability due to discounts and promotions
- Discounters strengthen their position in clothing
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- Figure 12: Aldi's new fashion campaign in Germany, 2020
- The forecast for clothing retailing improving from 2021
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- Figure 13: Europe Big Five: Total specialist clothing retailers’ sales and forecast, 2015-25
- Figure 14: Europe Big Five: Total specialist clothing retailers’ sales and forecast, by country, 2015-25
- The impact of COVID-19 on consumer behaviour across Europe
- Concern about exposure to COVID-19 steady but showing signs of increasing
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- Figure 15: Europe: Those extremely worried about the risk of being exposed to COVID-19, March-October 2020*
- Many cutting back on non-essential purchases
- Time-limiting store visits places premium on in-store navigation
- Many consumers reluctant to use cash
- A big switch to online
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- Figure 16: Europe: Changes to shopping behaviour since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, September/October 2020*
- Clothing slips down the spending agenda
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- Figure 17: Europe: Net balance* of expected spending on selected items in the next month, September/October 2020**
- Trying on clothing in-store remains an issue
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- Figure 18: Europe: people who would feel uncomfortable trying on clothing in-store, September/October 2020*
- People not keen on handling/touching products in-store
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- Figure 19: Europe: people who would feel uncomfortable handling/touching products in-store, September/October 2020*
- How the crisis is impacting on key consumer segments
- Women and older age groups most concerned about the virus
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- Figure 20: Europe: Those extremely worried about the risk of being exposed to COVID-19, by gender and age, September/October 2020*
- Women and older age groups also trying to limit time in-store
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- Figure 21: Europe: consumers trying to limit the time they spend in-store, by gender and age, September/October 2020*
- Youngest age groups most likely to be shopping more online
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- Figure 22: Europe: consumers shopping more online, by age and gender, September/October 2020*
- COVID-19: Market context
- UK
- France
- Germany
- Italy
- Spain
Issues and insights
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- Sports retailers look set to gain most from COVID-19
- How will online shape the fashion sector in the coming years?
The market – Key takeaways
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- France’s economy faces a contraction of 9% in 2020
- Fashion spending is hit hard by COVID-19
- Clothing specialists may be one of the worst hit retail sectors by COVID-19
- Specialists in decline as online eats into their market share
Consumer spending
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- The economy
- Decline in clothing market looks set to continue
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- Figure 23: France: Consumer spending on clothing and footwear (including VAT), 2015-20
Sector size and forecast
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- Clothing specialists look set to be among the worst hit by COVID-19
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- Figure 24: France: Specialist clothing and footwear retailers, sales (excluding VAT), 2015-20
- Figure 25: France: Specialist clothing and footwear retailers, forecast sales (excluding VAT), 2020-25
Inflation
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- Figure 26: France: Consumer prices * of clothing and footwear, Annual % change, 2015-19
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- Figure 27: France: Consumer prices * of clothing and footwear, Annual % change, January 2019 –August 2020
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Channels of distribution
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- Figure 28: France: Estimated distribution of spending on clothing and footwear by channel, 2019
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Companies and brands – Key takeaways
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- COVID-19 was the final straw for some
- Inditex now the largest player after collapse of La Halle
- A fragmented market
- Online boosted during lockdowns
- Amazon leads online but domestic retailers also popular
Leading players
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- Clear winners emerge
- Market leader Inditex bucks the trend
- Primark on the rise
- Zalando and other online-only players
- Old school retailers struggle
- La Halle
- Kidiliz
- Camaïeu
- Others
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- Figure 29: France: Leading specialist clothing retailers, sales (excl. VAT), 2015-19
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- Figure 30: France: Leading specialist clothing retailers, outlets, 2015-19
- Sales per outlet
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- Figure 31: France: Leading specialist clothing retailers, sales per outlet, 2015-19
Market shares
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- Figure 32: France: Leading specialist clothing retailers, sales as % all spending on clothing and footwear, 2015-19
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Online
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- Online activity
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- Figure 33: France: Broadband connections (percentage of households), 2014-19
- Shopping for clothing online
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- Figure 34: France: Online purchasing, 2015-19
- Online market size
- Leading online players
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- Figure 35: France: Leading retailers’ estimated clothing and footwear sales online, 2018-19
The consumer – Key takeaways
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- Online shopping is growing most amongst younger men
- Sports retailers take pole position
- Kiabi and H&M are the leading specialists
- Clothing purchases a low priority for most during COVID-19
How they shop for clothes
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- Penetration of online is growing most amongst men
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- Figure 36: France: Channels used for buying clothes in the last 12 months, June 2020
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- Figure 37: France: Online shopping for clothes in the last 12 months by gender, June 2020 and June 2019
- Figure 38: France: Online shopping for clothes in the last 12 months by age and gender, June 2020
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- Figure 39: France: Channels used for buying clothes in the last 12 months, June 2020
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- Figure 40: France: device used for online clothes purchases by age and gender, June 2020
Where they shop for clothes
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- Store-based specialists remain dominant
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- Figure 41: France: Stores used to shop for clothing, combined nets, June 2020
- Clothing specialists
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- Figure 42: France: Specialist retailers used for buying clothing in the last 12 months, June 2020
- Customer profiles
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- Figure 43: France: Specialist retailers used for buying clothing in the last 12 months, June 2020
- Non-specialists
- Sports retailers win first prize
- Amazon less important than in other markets
- One-third buy clothes in supermarkets and hypermarkets
- Department stores on the up
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- Figure 44: France: Non-Specialist retailers used for buying clothing in the last 12 months, June 2020
Clothes shopping behaviours relating to COVID-19
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- Figure 45: France: clothing shopping behaviours during the COVID-19 epidemic, June 2020
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- Figure 46: France: clothing shopping behaviours during the COVID-19 epidemic, by gender, June 2020
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- Figure 47: France: clothing shopping behaviours during the COVID-19 epidemic amongst women, June 2020
- Clothes shopping behaviours by retailer used
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- Figure 48: France: Selected clothing shopping behaviours during the COVID-19 epidemic by retailer shopped, June 2020
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Appendix – Research methodology, data sources and abbreviations
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- Abbreviations
- Data sources
C&A
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- What we think
- New store concept to tempt customers through the door
- New concession format to replace no longer sustainable standalone stores
- A leader in fashion sustainability
- Company background
- Company performance
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- Figure 49: C&A: Estimated group sales performance, 2015/16-2019/20
- Figure 50: C&A: Estimated outlet data, 2015/16-2019/20
- Retail offering
H&M Hennes & Mauritz
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- What we think
- New hyper-local store concept
- Custom-made perfect fit jeans
- Online expansion giving more customers more options to access its brands
- Livestreaming shopping events
- Fashion rental and re-sale point towards an increased focus on sustainability
- Company background
- Company performance
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- Figure 51: H&M Hennes & Mauritz: Group financial performance, 2014/15-2018/19
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- Figure 52: H&M Hennes & Mauritz: Outlet data, 2014/15-2018/19
- Retail offering
Grupo Inditex
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- What we think
- A global business
- Upsizing stores
- Online a big opportunity for growth
- Technology at the heart of the business
- Flexible and responsive approach to production helped it cope with COVID
- Sustainability is key to future
- Where now?
- Company background
- Company performance
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- Figure 53: Grupo Inditex: Group financial performance, 2015/16-2019/20
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- Figure 54: Grupo Inditex: Sales by brand, 2019/20
- Figure 55: Grupo Inditex: Outlet data, 2015/16-2019/20
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- Figure 56: Grupo Inditex: Outlet numbers by brand, 2019/20
- Retail offering
Primark/Penneys
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- What we think
- Missing out on online sales costs the brand millions in lost revenue
- A must-visit destination for consumers shopping for clothes in-store
- Cut-price fashion
- New eco-conscious fashion, homeware and beauty collection
- First ever sportswear collaboration
- Company background
- Company performance
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- Figure 57: Primark/Penneys: Group financial performance, 2015/16-2019/20
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- Figure 58: Primark/Penneys: Outlet data, 2015/16-2019/20
- Retail offering
Zalando
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- What we think
- Taking the guesswork out of size and fit
- Customers can now tailor their experience by following their favourite brands
- Boosting sustainability credentials with eco-friendly offering and second-hand platform
- Expanding luxury ranges to meet demand among younger consumers
- Company background
- Company performance
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- Figure 59: Zalando: Group financial performance, 2015-19
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- Figure 60: Zalando: key metrics, 2017-H1 2020
- Retail offering
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