Fashion Online - UK - 2022

OVERVIEW
Key issues covered in this Report
Market context
Products covered in this Report
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The five-year outlook for online fashion
Figure 1: Category outlook, 2022-27
The market
Online fashion sales weaken as cost pressures increase
Figure 2: Best- and worst-case forecast for consumer spending on online fashion, 2017-27 (prepared in June 2022)
Online captures 44% of fashion spending
Figure 3: Online as a percentage of all spending on clothing, footwear and accessories, 2016-22
Inflation is the key concern for 2022 for consumers, brands and the economy
Companies and brands
Brands experiment with live shopping
Shein usage soars
Figure 4: Attitudes towards and usage of selected online-only brands, 2022
The consumer
Footwear and womenswear most purchased online
Figure 5: Fashion items bought online in the last 12 months, 2022
Older Millennials’ usage of smartphones for fashion soars
Figure 6: How consumers have bought fashion items online in the last 12 months, 2022
Young pureplay fashion market becomes more competitive
Figure 7: Retailers without physical stores from where consumers have bought fashion online in the last 12 months, 2022
Next grows online, but value retailers set to benefit
Figure 8: Retailers with physical stores from where consumers have bought fashion online in the last 12 months, 2022
Wide range of products is important
Figure 9: Most important factors when choosing one retailer over another when buying fashion, 2022
Gen Zs worry about unsustainable packaging
Figure 10: Agreement with shopping behaviours when shopping for fashion online, 2022
Women find customer reviews most useful
Figure 11: Most useful tools to help with finding the correct size/fit when shopping online for clothes, 2022
ISSUES AND INSIGHTS
Impact of cost-of-living squeeze on online fashion
What are the main opportunities for growth in online fashion?
Adapting to a new digital reality
Promoting social commerce
Enhancing delivery options
Tapping into user-generated content
Using fit solutions to reduce the growing issue of returns
MARKET SIZE AND PERFORMANCE
Online fashion sales begin to fall in 2022
Figure 12: Online consumer spending on clothing, footwear and accessories, 2017-22
Online captures 44% of fashion spending
Figure 13: Online as a percentage of all spending on clothing, footwear and accessories, 2016-22
MARKET FORECAST
Five-year outlook for online fashion
Figure 14: Category outlook, 2022-27
Online fashion sales weaken as cost pressures increase
Figure 15: Best- and worst-case forecast for consumer spending on online fashion, 2017-27 (prepared in June 2022)
Figure 16: Consumer spending on online fashion, 2017-27
Pureplays see slowdown in sales
Market drivers and assumptions
Figure 17: Key drivers affecting Mintel’s market forecast, 2016-26
Learnings from the last income squeeze
Figure 18: Value sales of online clothing, footwear and accessories, 2006-12
Forecast methodology
MARKET DRIVERS
Personal ownership of consumer technology products
Figure 19: Personal ownership of consumer technology products, 2021
Social media use
Figure 20: Social media use, 2022
Catering to an ageing population
Figure 21: Trends in the age structure of the UK population, by gender, 2021 and 2026
The conflict in Ukraine will hurt the UK economy
GDP reached pre-pandemic levels in November 2021…
…but the post-COVID-19 bounce-back will be followed by a period of slower growth
Employment has held up better than expected
Inflation is the key concern for 2022 for consumers, brands and the economy
Figure 22: Overall CPIH and garment CPIH percentage change, 2021-22
Consumers’ financial wellbeing has slipped from its recent high point…
Figure 23: Household financial wellbeing index, 2016-22
…and concerns over inflation are coming to the fore
Figure 24: Consumer concerns about household finances, 2021-22
MARKET SHARES
Amazon has the largest share, but pureplays see declining growth
Figure 25: Top ten online fashion retailers in the UK by estimated market share, 2021
Figure 26: Top online fashion retailers in the UK by estimated market share, 2020 and 2021
LAUNCH ACTIVITY AND INNOVATION
Fashion brands develop sizing and fitting tools online
Meta acquires Presize, betting on virtual sizing technology
The Very Group to launch personalised size and fit tool across 300 fashion brands
Figure 27: The Very Group and Truefit too, 2022
Fashion brands add third-party offering
Mountain Warehouse opens online marketplace
Yoox debuts online high-end fashion marketplace
Arket adds third-party brand for the first time
Brands diversify offering outside fashion
Mango to sell Ritual Cosmetics online
Farfetch to launch its own beauty marketplace with over 100 brands
More fashion brands enter rental market
M&S teams up with Dotte to launch childrenswear resale service
Little Mistress partners with Hirestreet for rental service
Figure 28: Little Mistress, 2022
Boohoo to launch resale platform for each of its 13 brands
French Connection launches rental service from its own website
Sustainable launches take on several formats
JD Williams launches sustainable brand Anise
YOOX launches RETHINK WITH <3
Hugo Boss enters resale market with own platform Hugo Boss Pre-Loved
Brands experiment with live shopping
M&S to inspire customers via live stream shopping on its website
Klarna launches Virtual Shopping via its Store App
Figure 29: Klarna’s live shopping feature, 2022
Threads launches ecommerce and live shopping
Savage X Fenty launches live shopping
Omnichannel shopping post-COVID accelerates role of technology in stores
Nike’s Rise concept store
Figure 30: Nike’s inside track feature at its rise concept store in Seoul, 2021
Amazon’s first physical fashion store
Figure 31: Amazon Style fitting room technology, 2022
Website launches
Primark to relaunch website by the end of March
M&S launches Goodmove on third-party sports website
Bottega Veneta launches app with AR filter
ADVERTISING AND MARKETING ACTIVITY
Ad spending soars in 2021
Figure 32: Total above-the-line, online display and direct mail advertising expenditure on fashion by pureplays, 2018-22
Shein the top ad spender in 2021
Shein and Klarna launch pop-up
Figure 33: Klarna and Shein pop-up, 2022
Shein launches purposeful collection ‘evoluSHEIN’
Figure 34: Total above-the-line, online display and direct mail advertising expenditure on fashion by pureplays, by top advertisers, 2018-22
Digital channel dominated ad spending
Figure 35: Recorded above-the-line, online display and direct mail total advertising expenditure on fashion by pureplays, by media type, 2021
Nielsen Ad Intel coverage
BRAND RESEARCH
Brand map
Figure 36: Attitudes towards and usage of selected brands, 2022
Key brand metrics
Figure 37: Key metrics for selected brands, 2022
Brand attitudes: Very is highly trusted
Figure 38: Attitudes, by brand, 2022
Brand personality: Shein perceived as fun, but unethical
Figure 39: Brand personality – macro image, 2022
Thread seen as aspirational and Farfetch as expensive
Figure 40: Brand personality – micro image, 2022
Brand analysis
Shein’s usage soars
Amazon and eBay expand fashion offer
Very seen as stylish
Farfetch and Thread expand their offering
FASHION ITEMS BOUGHT ONLINE
Footwear and womenswear most purchased online
Figure 41: Fashion items bought online in the last 12 months, 2022
Three in 10 men have not purchased fashion online
Figure 42: Fashion items bought online in the last 12 months, by gender, 2022
Gen Zs and Younger Millennials buy most range of items
Figure 43: Repertoire of fashion items bought online in the last 12 months, by age group, 2022
HOW THEY SHOP
Big rise in smartphone purchasing
Figure 44: How consumers have bought fashion items online in the last 12 months, 2022
Older Millennials usage of smartphones for fashion soars
Figure 45: Consumers who have bought fashion items online via a smartphone in the last 12 months, by age group, 2020 and 2022
Growth of marketplace app usage
Figure 46: How consumers have bought fashion items online, 2022
WHERE THEY SHOP
Multichannel retailers remain most popular
Figure 47: Types of retailers used to purchase clothing online in the last 12 months, 2022
Young pureplay fashion market becomes more competitive
Figure 48: Retailers without physical stores from where consumers have bought fashion online in the last 12 months, 2022
Next grows online, but value retailers set to benefit
Figure 49: Retailers with physical stores from where consumers have bought fashion online in the last 12 months, 2022
Figure 50: Repertoire of retailers with physical stores and online-only retailers from where consumers have bought fashion online in the last 12 months, 2022
MOST IMPORTANT FACTORS WHEN BUYING FASHION ONLINE 
Wide range of products is important
Figure 51: Most important factors when choosing one retailer over another when buying fashion, 2022
Enhancing delivery options
Figure 52: Most important factors when choosing one retailer over another when buying fashion, 2022
Baby Boomers most brand loyal
SHOPPING BEHAVIOURS
Close to six in 10 return items purchased online
Figure 53: Agreement with shopping behaviours when shopping for fashion online, 2022
Gen Zs worry about unsustainable packaging
Figure 54: Agreement with statement ‘I am concerned about the environmental impact of packaging used when shopping for fashion online’, by generation, 2022
Young Gen Zs buy and share fashion on social media
Figure 55: Agreement with statements about online fashion shopping behaviours, by generation, 2022
Ensuring online shopping is enjoyable
FINDING THE CORRECT SIZE/FIT WHEN BUYING ONLINE
Women find customer reviews most useful
Figure 56: Most useful tools to help with finding the correct size/fit when shopping online for clothes, 2022
Developing accurate online fit tools
APPENDIX – DATA SOURCES, ABBREVIATIONS AND SUPPORTING INFORMATION
Abbreviations
Consumer research methodology
APPENDIX – FORECAST METHODOLOGY
Market forecast
Figure 57: Best- and worst-case forecast for consumer spending on online fashion, 2022-27
Market drivers and assumptions
Forecast methodology