The clothing retail market for all Ireland has shown growth in 2014 with this growth set to continue into 2015, with an increase in clothing sales expected this year. For the first time since 2011, high street sales are expected to increase, however, not quite at the same rate as value-oriented retailers who are still experiencing the most growth year on year in IoI.
Moving forward, consumers will continue to remain conscious of their spending – making sure their shopping sprees are justified. However, this frugal behaviour witnessed in consumers in recent years has also led to a new market emerging – the clothes swapping market, which has a number of big players including eBay and start-ups such as Swishing and Depop cashing in on this market.
Key themes of the report
Who are the key retailers operating in the NI and RoI clothing market? – What retailers are excelling in the market? Which types of outlets do consumers prefer to shop with?
How is online shopping faring in IoI? – Is there much of a market for clothes shopping online? Are consumers still wary of shopping online? Is the online market taking off? Is the process of returning clothes bought online deterring consumers from shopping online?
What impact have changes in the cost of clothing had on the Irish clothing retail market? – Have purchasing patterns changed because of the economic downturn? Are consumers still driven by value for money? Are other shopping trends emerging?
What is the consumer satisfaction with clothes purchased? Are consumers returning the clothes they have bought? What are the key reasons that consumers are returning their clothes for?
What impacts how consumers dress? – Are consumers influenced to dress a certain way? Are magazines or in-store models impacting style? Do consumers look to friends or family for fashion advice?
Other Mintel reports of relevance include:
Clothing Retailing – Ireland, December 2014
Grocery Retailing – Ireland, December 2014
Online and Mobile Retailing – Ireland, March 2015
Social Networking – Ireland, May 2015
Clothing Retailing – UK, October 2014
Women’s Clothing – US, May 2015
Definition
This report will examine the clothing retailing industry in Ireland through exploring the issues that are driving or inhibiting growth. For the purpose of this report, Mintel looks at the following clothing retailer types:
Department stores (eg Arnotts, Debenhams, House of Fraser)
Value retailers (eg Primark/Penneys)
High street clothing retailers (eg Topshop/Topman, Next)
Supermarket own-labels – This includes supermarkets such as Tesco and Asda, which sell a range of generally low-priced clothing using their own-label alongside more traditional sales of foodstuffs and textiles (eg the F&F range at Tesco)
Independent retailers/boutiques – This includes small chains and independent stores that carry a range of brands that may vary from designer to value brands, depending on the retailer’s position in the market (eg ASOS)
The term ‘street fashion’ describes the clothes worn by everyday people on the street, whether that is designer labels, high fashion clothing, value retailer products, casual or sportswear.
Consumer data
For the purpose of this report, Mintel commissioned exclusive online research into the number of consumers who have bought clothes in IoI in the last 12 months and in which retailers. Also discussed is Irish consumers’ clothing returns, including reasons for returns both in-store and online, and consumers’ attitudes towards clothing.
A total of 650 internet users aged 16+ in NI and 1,350 internet users aged 16+ in RoI were asked the following questions:
“From which, if any, of these retailers have you bought any clothing for yourself during the last 12 months, either in-store or online?”
“Thinking about any clothes you have bought in-store or online for yourself in the last 12 months, have you returned any items?”
“Which of the following reasons did you return item(s) purchased in-store or online in the last 12 months?”
“Apart from your own preferences and cost, which of the following, if any, most influence how you decide to dress?”
The results from this survey are discussed in The Consumer sections of this report.
Please note that the results presented in The Consumer sections of this report relate to the usage and habits of Irish internet users only, and do not account for the behaviours of non-internet users. Eurostat (January 2015) highlights that 80% of RoI consumers have used the internet in the last 12 months, while the ONS (May 2014) highlights that 79% of NI consumers have used the internet.
Data sources
In the Market Size and Forecast section, Mintel uses economic data collected on inflation, population, exchange rate and GDP (Gross Domestic Product) to run a multivariate linear regression and trend function. With this function Mintel is able to forecast future market sizes and interpret the results based on the above variables including other independent factors the analyst interprets could change the future market. Economic data is collected from NISRA (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency), ONS (Office for National Statistics), CSO (Central Statistics Office) and other statistical sources.
In compiling this report, Mintel has gathered data from separate NI and RoI sources (eg NISRA, CSO). In some cases, therefore, it has not been possible to provide comparable data for each region. For the purpose of this report:
IoI refers to the island of Ireland.
NI refers to Northern Ireland.
RoI refers to the Republic of Ireland.
Therefore, ‘Irish consumers’ refers to both NI and RoI consumers.
