Apparel, Clothing and Footwear

Within apparel and footwear, childrenswear was the least affected by COVID-19 and lockdowns, so the high growth recovery rates seen in apparel for adults are not as evident in childrenswear in 2023. Widespread and ongoing economic uncertainty is…

Footwear has been under particular stress with the shift from traditional leather shoes to other materials and sports shoes for many years. In particularly, children’s footwear has been under pressure, and it is projected to see the biggest decline…

Discounting activities have been gathering pace in footwear as players deploy this strategy to clear out accumulated stock gathered during the pandemic, and to mitigate declines in volume sales as a result of inflationary pressures which are…

Hosiery slowed down in Austria in 2023 in comparison with 2022, as the cost of living crisis instilled caution over spending among consumers. Additionally, consumers purchased more hosiery in 2022, after two years of reduced demand due to the…

Extremely high inflation levels, resulting in price increases across most consumer goods, have directly impacted household purchasing power and led to changes in consumer behaviour. Within hosiery, consumers have become more price-sensitive,…

Men’s jeans and women’s jeans are projected to see retail volume sales decline across price segments over 2023. In Austria, the purchase of new jeans was not a priority at the end of the review period, with many consumers already owing one or more…

The lifting of pandemic restrictions has boosted sales of Jeans in Greece in 2023, while unusually low temperatures in May and June prolonged the jeans-wearing season (usually, sales begin to decline in mid-spring, when local consumers switch to…

As in womenswear, retail volume sales of menswear are projected to decline over 2023, as the category stabilised following rebounds, especially in 2022, from the Coronavirus (COVID-19)-induced slump in 2020. Moreover, economic uncertainty amid high…

The impact of hikes in production and transport costs is leading to price increases across menswear in Greece, which was visible in mid-2022 and continues to influence category performance in 2023. Amid the cost of living crisis, which is taking its…

Sportswear in Austria is starting to show signs of saturation after an excellent recovery from the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Many consumers purchased sportswear/athleisure for comfort and ease during long periods at home in the wake of…

Although inflation is beginning to ease in 2023, average unit prices remain high, and local consumers have been forced to reduce spending on non-essential items, including apparel and footwear. Many consumers are trading down to cheaper brands of…

Retail volume sales of womenswear are projected to fall over 2023. This is partly due to stabilisation following two years of rebound, especially in 2022, from the slump recorded during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in 2020. However, demand has…

A mild winter in 2023 led to only modest volume growth for product areas such as jackets and coats and jumpers. However, temperatures were unusually low in late spring, with the summer season starting later than usual. This impacted sales of summer…

Similar to most apparel categories, apparel accessories registered weaker volume sales in 2023 after growth in 2021 and 2022. Likewise, current value sales remained buoyant due to inflation and rising unit prices. Apparel accessories are purchased…

Being viewed as non-essential products, apparel accessories was challenged due to inflation rates in 2023. Portuguese consumers suffered from declining purchasing power, adapting their purchasing choices to focus on essential items. The recovery from…

Retail volume sales of apparel accessories fell significantly for the second consecutive year in 2023. This was mainly due the declining performance of other apparel accessories, following the relaxation of all remaining regulations regarding the…

Apparel accessories has seen a weaker performance in 2023, following strong growth in 2021 and a stable development in 2022 (excluding Other Apparel, which plummeted due to face masks no longer being needed).

Many local consumers prefer to make frequent small purchases, such as apparel accessories, in order to stylise their look without having to spend on larger, more expensive items of apparel, or at least delay their purchase. This behaviour is…

Apparel and footwear in Norway is expected to see a decline in retail volume terms and a modest current value sales increase in 2023, boosted by inflation and rising unit prices. The notably lower growth in 2023 follows two years of growth, which saw…

The outbreak of COVID-19, followed by the war in Ukraine, has led to high inflation rates in Portugal throughout 2023. Despite apparel and footwear products only witnessing moderate price increases, energy and packaged food saw high rises, impacting…

Retail sales of apparel and footwear in Spain registered a slowdown in growth in both volume and constant value terms in 2023, with the high cost of living being the key factor behind this trend. With many households exposed to rising interest rates,…

Apparel and footwear in Sweden is expected to display weaker current retail value and volume growth in 2023. Retail volume will post an overall decline, while retail value is set to remain positive, albeit lower than levels experienced in 2021 and…

Economic instability and high inflation continued to restrain retail volume sales of apparel and footwear in Turkey at the end of the review period. The Turkish economy is taking longer to recover than many the economies of some other countries. This…

Childrenswear has seen volume sales decline in 2023, while inflation and rising unit prices have boosted current value sales, similar to the overall trend in apparel. While childrenswear did not experience the same fluctuations as other apparel…

After the decline registered in 2020 due to COVID-19 and successive lockdowns, childrenswear registered noticeable growth in 2021. Nevertheless, in 2022 and 2023, retail volume slowed down, lower than levels seen in men and womenswear, as parents…

Retail sales of childrenswear in Spain registered relatively modest growth in constant value terms in 2023, with the high cost of living being the key factor behind this trend. With many households exposed to rising interest rates, given the high…

In 2023, childrenswear in Sweden is anticipated to follow the overall apparel trend, showing a decrease in retail volume sales. The landscape remained relatively stable during COVID-19, but similar shopping patterns influence it, as some Swedish…

The demand for childrenswear is dampened by demographic trends, with the fertility rate and 0-3-year-old population seeing a downward trajectory in the country. In addition, the 4-14-year-old population started to drop towards the end of the review…

Like apparel, footwear registered declining volume sales in 2023 following two good years, as local consumer spending began to shift away from goods back to services. Inflation and rising unit prices positively impacted current value sales, however.…

Following the major downturn registered in 2020 caused by COVID-19, retail volume sales of footwear continued to recover in 2023. However, growth rates slowed significantly, and demand for footwear remained well below the pre-pandemic level. In 2023,…

Retail sales of footwear saw fairly modest growth in volume terms in 2023, continuing the trend of the previous yearly. With wallets being squeezed due to inflationary pressures and high interest rates, a growing number of Spaniards were forced to…

Similar to apparel, footwear is projected to exhibit a decline in retail volume growth in 2023, with retail value sales remaining positive, primarily attributed to inflation and rising unit prices. The sector faced a steeper decline than apparel…

All categories of footwear are projected to post retail volume growth over 2023, led by a double-digit increase for children’s footwear and moderate rises for women’s and men’s footwear. Both children’s and women’s footwear are projected to exceed…

Following two years of solid performance, hosiery is registering a decline in volume sales in 2023. However, modest value sales growth will result from inflation and rising unit prices. As local consumers have returned to apparel and footwear retail…

Hosiery registered positive retail volume growth in 2023 while recovering from the downturn it experienced in 2020. Sales of hosiery are often driven by products needing to be replaced, as well as the essential element of items such as underwear.…

Retail sales of hosiery saw minimal growth in constant value terms in 2023. This was partly due to the high cost of living, in the context of elevated inflation and rising interest rates, which led a significant number of local consumers to trade…

Hosiery is set to display a retail volume decline in 2023, in line with overall apparel and footwear. The landscape experienced an upswing in performance with the return of in-store shopping following the COVID-19; however, the cost-of-living crisis,…

In 2023, the demand for hosiery continued to recovery from the steep decline recorded due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis in 2020. The rate of growth in retail volume sales increased during 2023, although the market size of hosiery is not…

As with apparel in general, jeans has seen a decline in volume sales and a modest increase in current value sales in 2023, primarily driven by inflation and rising unit prices. Since jeans is one of the more durable apparel categories, it is easier…

Jeans is set to register positive retail volume growth in 2023, with sales encouraged by consumers viewing jeans as a staple item. Jeans are also appreciated for versatility and suitability to wear with various garments and footwear, in both formal…

Jeans fared better than many other categories within apparel and footwear in 2023. Such products tend to be viewed as an essential part of Spanish wardrobes, being worn by men, women and children throughout the year. The casualisation of workwear…

Jeans is predicted to register a decrease in retail volume terms in 2023, with current retail value remaining positive due to inflation and rising unit prices. Prior to the outbreak of COVID-19, jeans struggled with retail volume growth, with…

The shift from skinny jeans to extra-baggy and extra-comfortable styles was already noticeable during the review period. The changes in lifestyles with the reopening of society, as the threat and related restrictions of the Coronavirus (COVID-19)…

As with the overall performance of apparel and footwear, menswear has seen volume sales decline in 2023, while current value growth has slowed but remains positive due to inflation and rising unit prices. This follows two years of growth thanks to a…

Following the impact of COVID-19 and the major downturn menswear registered in 2020, the landscape was poised to see significant retail volume growth. However, this expectation was hindered by high inflation rates in 2022 and 2023, slowing down…

Retail sales of menswear in Spain registered a slowdown in growth in both volume and constant value terms in 2023, with the high cost of living being the key factor behind this trend. With many households exposed to rising interest rates, given the…

Menswear is expected to develop in line with the overall apparel landscape in 2023, displaying a retail volume decline while retail value sales remain positive due to inflation and rising unit prices. Following the outbreak of COVID-19, menswear was…

Menswear is projected to see slower retail volume and current value growth than womenswear over 2023. There tended to be a higher level of price-sensitivity amongst men in Turkey, which limited their frequency of shopping for apparel during the…

Health and exercise became even more important during the pandemic, with many local consumers believing it to be key for good mental health. Norwegians, who were already very outdoorsy, increased the frequency with which they undertook activities…

Although the short-term impact on sportswear was negative due to lockdowns and restrictions, COVID-19 has boosted consumers' interest in health and fitness. The pandemic has increased consumers' interest in long-term health, with a rising number of…