Table of Contents
Executive Summary
-
- The market
- Overseas visits and spend drop
-
- Figure 1: Total spend by overseas residents in the UK, 2008-19
- Companies and brands
- Luxury brands focus on own-branded websites
- Growing interest in second-hand luxury fashion
- Louis Vuitton spends the most on ad campaigns
- The consumer
- Luxury streetwear drives demand
-
- Figure 2: What designer fashion items consumers have bought in the last 3 years, August 2019
- Gifting key purchase driver
-
- Figure 3: Who designer fashion items were bought for in the last 3 years, August 2019
- Department stores first choice for designer fashion
-
- Figure 4: Where designer fashion items were bought in the last 3 years, August 2019
- Over-45s want designer fashion that keeps its value
-
- Figure 5: Designer fashion purchasing behaviour, August 2019
- Demand for better quality
-
- Figure 6: Attitudes towards designer fashion purchasing, August 2019
- Millennials want more ethical designer fashion
-
- Figure 7: Issues related to designer fashion purchasing, August 2019
- Appealing to those who can’t afford luxury
-
- Figure 8: Reasons for not buying designer fashion, August 2019
- What we think
Issues and Insights
-
- What are the main changes happening in designer fashion?
- The facts
- The implications
- What are the opportunities for driving sales of designer fashion?
- The facts
- The implications
- How can the luxury sector tap into demand for experiential retailing?
- The facts
- The implications
The Market – What You Need to Know
-
- Wealthy individuals in the UK decline
- Changes in the population structure
- Overseas visits drop
- Average spend per visit is highest for Middle Eastern countries
Market Drivers
-
- Real wage growth and inflation remain healthy
-
- Figure 9: Real wage growth – Average weekly earnings vs inflation, 2016-19
- Future consumer confidence begins to wane
-
- Figure 10: Consumer financial confidence, January 2017-September 2019
- Wealthy individuals in the UK decline
-
- Figure 11: Number of HNWIs in the UK, 2008-18
- Changes in the population structure
-
- Figure 12: Trends in the age structure of the UK population, 2019-29
- Figure 13: Breakdown of trends in the age structure of the UK population, 2019-29
- Value of Sterling remains low
-
- Figure 14: Selected international currency exchange rates, annual averages, 2003-19
- Figure 15: Sterling exchange rate versus selected currencies, annual averages, 2014-19
- Total overseas visits drop
-
- Figure 16: Total overseas residents’ visits to the UK, 2010-19*
- Downturn in spend by tourists to the UK
-
- Figure 17: Total spend by overseas residents when visiting the UK, 2008-19
- Average spend per visit declines
-
- Figure 18: Average spend per visit to the UK, 2010-18
- US overtakes France as top visiting country in 2018
-
- Figure 19: Top 20 markets, by volume of visits to the UK, 2018
- Americans are top spenders when visiting the UK
-
- Figure 20: Top 20 countries, by total amount spent when visiting the UK, 2018
- Average spend per visit is highest for Middle Eastern countries
-
- Figure 21: Top 20 countries, by average amount spent per visit in the UK, 2018
Companies and Brands – What You Need to Know
-
- Luxury brands focus on own-branded websites
- Luxury department stores invest in technology
- Luxury brands target young with social media
- A year of collaborations
- Growing interest in second-hand luxury fashion
- Louis Vuitton spends most on ad campaigns
- Focus on digital campaigns
Online
-
- Online gains share of total fashion spend
- Multi-brand pureplays
- Farfetch
- Yoox Net-a-Porter
- MatchesFashion
- Luxury brands focus on own-branded sites
- Luxury department stores
- Online retailers’ competitive strategies
- Boosting customer experience
- International expansion
- Social media
Launch Activity and Innovation
-
- Collaborations
- Acne Studios and Mulberry reveal ‘Friendship’ collection
-
- Figure 22: Mulberry X Acne Studio ‘Friendship’ collection, 2019
- Victoria Beckham X Reebok Spring 2019 collection
- Fendi X Nicki Minaj in a futuristic collaboration
- Inclusivity
- Ralph Lauren PRIDE polo
- Fenty becomes first LVMH brand headed by woman of colour
- H&M collaborates with Italian couturier Giambattista Valli
-
- Figure 23: H&M X Giambattista Valli, 2019
- In-store experiences
- Burberry launches its first video game
- Flannels opens first London flagship
-
- Figure 24: Flannels Oxford Street store, 2019
- Selfridges new menswear floor
-
- Figure 25: Selfridges skate bows on its menswear floor, 2019
- Harrods new menswear department
- Second-hand luxury fashion
- Selfridges launches second-hand clothing concession
-
- Figure 26: Vestiaire Collective at Selfridges, 2019
- Farfetch teams up with second-hand clothing platform Thrift+
-
- Figure 27: Farfetch X Thrift+ service, 2019
- Ralph Lauren and Depop
- Sustainable fashion
- Stella McCartney collaborations
- Prada’s Re-Nylon bags
-
- Figure 28: Prada’s Re-Nylon bags, 2019
- Ralph Lauren’s Earth Polo
- Max Mara upcycles eco padding for coats
- Pop-ups
- Fenty to open first UK pop-up at Selfridges
- Balmain pop-up at Selfridges
-
- Figure 29: Balmain pop-up at Selfridges, 2019
- Harrods and NSPCC designer charity pop-up
-
- Figure 30: Fashion Re-Told at Harrods, 2019
- Dior opens Harrods pop-up
Advertising and Marketing Activity
-
- Advertising spenders
-
- Figure 31: Recorded above-the-line, online display and direct mail advertising expenditure on fashion by selected leading designers, 2014-19
- Press remains the biggest media channel although slowing
-
- Figure 32: Recorded above-the-line, online display and direct mail advertising expenditure on fashion, by media type, 2014-19
- Key campaigns in 2019
- Inclusivity
- A cinematic approach
- A natural backdrop
- Nielsen Ad Intel coverage
The Consumer – What You Need to Know
-
- Luxury streetwear drives demand
- Rising demand for designer bags and jewellery
- Gifting key purchase driver
- Rise in online purchases
- Department stores first choice for designer fashion
- Over-45s want designer fashion that keeps its value
- Demand for better quality
- Millennials want more ethical designer fashion
- Luxury brands look to be more diverse
- Appealing to those who can’t afford luxury
What They Buy
-
- Luxury streetwear drives demand
-
- Figure 33: What designer fashion items consumers have bought in the last 3 years, August 2019
- Trend for designer trainers
- Rise in purchasing of designer jewellery
- Handbags are a growth area
-
- Figure 34: What designer fashion items consumers have bought in the last 3 years, August 2017 and August 2019
- Focus on menswear
-
- Figure 35: What designer fashion items consumers have bought in the last 3 years, by gender, August 2019
- Young are keenest designer shoppers
-
- Figure 36: Profile of consumers who have purchased any designer fashion item in the last three years, by gender, age and household income, August 2019
- Millennials buy most items
-
- Figure 37: Repertoire of designer fashion items consumers have bought in the last 3 years, August 2019
Who They Buy For
-
- Gifting key purchase driver
-
- Figure 38: Who designer fashion items were bought for in the last 3 years, August 2019
- Women treat themselves to designer fashion
-
- Figure 39: Who designer fashion items were bought for in the last 3 years, by gender, August 2019
- Rise in designer childrenswear buying
How and Where They Shop
-
- Rise in online purchases
-
- Figure 40: How designer fashion items were bought in the last 3 years, August 2019
- Department stores first choice for designer fashion
-
- Figure 41: Where designer fashion items were bought in the last 3 years, August 2019
- 25% of under-25s buy pre-loved designer fashion
-
- Figure 42: Consumers who have bought designer fashion items second-hand in the last 3 years, by age and gender, August 2019
- Men aged 16-44 shop at designer outlets
-
- Figure 43: Where designer fashion items were bought in the last 3 years, by age, August 2019
- Figure 44: Where designer fashion items were bought online in the last 3 years, by age, August 2019
- Older Millennials shop around
-
- Figure 45: Repertoire of where designer fashion items were bought in the last 3 years, August 2019
Designer Fashion Shopping Behaviours
-
- Designer fashion that will keep its value is key
-
- Figure 46: Designer fashion purchasing behaviour, August 2019
- Good reviews encourage purchasing
-
- Figure 47: Consumers who are most likely to buy designer fashion that has good reviews, by age, August 2019
- Social media is an important part of the buyer journey
-
- Figure 48: Consumers who are most likely to buy designer fashion that they have seen on social media, by age, August 2019
- Males want designer fashion that looks different and exclusive
-
- Figure 49: Consumers who are most likely to buy designer fashion that only has a limited amount of pieces available, by age and gender, August 2019
Attitudes towards Designer Fashion
-
- Demand for better quality
-
- Figure 50: Attitudes towards designer fashion purchasing, August 2019
- Consumers care how brands act
-
- Figure 51: Attitudes towards designer fashion purchasing, by gender, August 2019
- Appealing to new customers
Issues Related to Designer Fashion
-
- Millennials want more ethical designer fashion
-
- Figure 52: Issues related to designer fashion purchasing, August 2019
- Demand for luxury brands to be more diverse
- Affluent believe in-store experience better than online
-
- Figure 53: Agreement with statement ‘You get a better experience when buying designer fashion items in-store than online’, by socio-economic group, August 2019
- Millennials want plus-sized designer fashion
-
- Figure 54: Designer Fashion – CHAID – Tree output, September 2019
-
- Figure 55: Designer Fashion – CHAID – Table output, September 2019
- Methodology
Reasons for Not Buying Designer Fashion
-
- Appealing to those who can’t afford luxury
-
- Figure 56: Reasons for not buying designer fashion, August 2019
- Preferring an experience over fashion
Appendix – Data Sources, Abbreviations and Supporting Information
-
- Abbreviations
- Consumer research methodology
Back to top