More Mintel Findings

REVIEW OF 2013 CONSUMER TRENDS IN CLOTHING MARKET- DECEMBER 2013

• Shoppers have continued to increase their spending on clothing, despite the squeeze on incomes: growth in spending has remained well above inflation between 2008 and 2013. Mintel's quarterly Consumer Confidence Trackers show that people have spent more liberally on buying clothes, whilst cutting back elsewhere, such as on big ticket goods or on leisure.- Links well within my survey- clothing expenditure may have grown, but a lot of consumers impulse buy and then never wear the items.
• Both women and men have become savvier clothes shoppers following the economic downturn and are tending to purchase new garments when they are reduced and comparing prices more before buying. Mintel’s consumer research found that 61% of women and 50% of men mostly bought clothes on sale/special offer and 29% of all consumers shopped around comparing prices before buying in 2013, up from 25% in 2012.  
• The change is partly due to heavy discounting by many retailers, which has meant that people no longer need to wait for the seasonal sales. Although the increased popularity of shopping for clothes online and of purchasing fashion from pureplays Amazon and eBay, which sell items on discount all year round, has also played a part.
• The keenest clothes shoppers aged under-35 are increasingly demanding not just fashion-led clothing, but also frequently updated collections that are changed at least every six weeks, with 48% of this age group agreeing with this.-Links to target demographic
• The growing 25-34-year-old demographic, which is set to rise by 9% in the next five years, is slowly overtaking the younger under-25 age group to become the most influential clothes shoppers, as 15-24s are facing more financial pressures. This is in part due to 25-34-year-olds higher disposable income, but also to their growing interest in fashion. Mintel’s consumer research shows that they are the highest spenders of all age groups on clothing and the most interested in the latest fashion.- Key demographic don't have disposable income, and are facing financial pressure which means they need to utilise clothing they already have hence the need for this app.
• The youngest consumers aged 16-24 are becoming less important for fashion since they are increasingly squeezed and are consequently cutting back on clothes and shoes purchases. Other age groups are growing in number and are becoming more fashion interested meaning that there are rising opportunities for clothing retailers targeting consumers higher up the age spectrum.

YOUNG PEOPLE ERR ON THE SIDE OF CAUTION WITH FASHION- APRIL 2013

What 16-25 year olds have been spending money on

• Clothes remain a high priority for under-25s, with one in five spending most of their extra money on clothes
• While under-25s are still relatively confident about their finances, the latest quarterly Consumers and the Economic Outlook shows that young people have become slightly more cautious and while they remain avid clothes shoppers, there has been a seven percentage point drop in those who have bought new clothes in the last three months in April 2013 compared with July 2012.
• The latest research, however, highlights that young people appear to be increasingly adding to their savings, which has increased by seven percentage points in the last year, instead of splashing out on fashion.- Making use of the clothing they already have, whereby the app can help them feel fashionable without buying new pieces
• This cautiousness is impacting on their future spending plans and only just over two fifths intend to buy new clothes in the next three months.
• Young women, on the other hand are still the main female clothes shoppers, with almost seven in ten buying clothes once a month or more and around half of these young females shopping as often as two-to-three times a month. While female 16-24s continue to go shopping often there has been a clear shift in their shopping behaviour. They are a third more likely to mostly buy clothes when they are on sale in 2013 compared with 2012 and 14 percentage points more inclined to mainly buy clothes for replacement, something which had previously tended to be the preserve of older consumers. Females in full-time education have cut back the most and all of these attitudes are accentuated among this demographic.-The apps target demographic is students and those without disposable incomes.
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• Young women have become significantly less impulsive, with almost four in ten in buying less clothes on impulse or as a treat than they did 12 months ago in 2013, up from three in ten in 2012. This represents a big change and 16-24s are now the age group that has cut back the most on treating themselves, which will have major implications for young fashion retailers
• Females aged under-25 consumers have become much more discerning about the price of the garments they are buying and there has been a ten percentage point increase in the proportion of female under-25s who are shopping in the same stores but buying less expensive items.

WHAT ARE SQUEEZED CONSUMERS SPENDING ON- JUNE 2013

• In 2013, consumers are prioritising clothing spend more than in comparative periods in 2012 and 2011 according to Mintel's Tracker survey.

• Shoppers are continuing to increase their spend on clothing and footwear substantially, even in real terms. The category seems to be more important to consumers than ever.

ASOS LAUNCHES VALUE RANGE- AUGUST 2013

• Mintel’s latest consumer confidence tracker shows that young people are increasingly feeling the economic squeeze. One in four 16-24s described their financial situation in August 2013 as “Tight – I am making ends meet, but only just”, which has risen from one in six the previous year. 
• At the same time, there has been an almost 10 percentage point drop in young people stating that they are “OK – I get by, but there’s not a lot left” in the last year and a slight rise in those stating that they are struggling, although this group still remains small.
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• Young people are cutting back on their discretionary spending and Mintel’s research shows that as a result of this fashion has become less of a priority, with an eight percentage point fall in 16-24s spending their extra money on clothing and jewellery to just over a third in the last 12 months. More young consumers are now putting money in their savings account than spending it on buying new clothes.

FASHION ONLINE- AUGUST 2013

• Consumers are turning to online fashion and recommendation sites such as Dressipi to help with the wealth of choice online and to give them ideas about what clothes to buy
• Dressipi is an online fashion and recommendation service that aims to offer users advice on dressing for their shape and style. Customers are shown a curated selection of clothes, shoes, and accessories selected by the company's team of personal stylists.
• The wardrobe organiser app Cloth has been developed to incorporate weather data and suggest outfits accordingly. Cloth has partnered with weather site Wunderground, meaning that when choosing an outfit, the user can select the weather tab and the app will suggest the best outfits for the conditions. 
• MINTEL INSPIRE TREND- These functions tie in with the inspire trend 'Guiding Choice', which is all about how consumers faced with too much choice and too little time are looking for shortcuts. This has led to a variety of tools and tactics aimed at helping consumers to make choices. We have already seen how retailers such as Netflix and Amazon have introduced 'if you liked this, you'll like that' functions to their websites.

DIGITAL TRENDS- SEPTEMBER 2013

• Tablets are starting to have a huge impact on online media consumption, as well as m-commerce as people start to use 'mobile devices' for activities that most are reluctant to do on smartphones (eg shopping online, reading news and watching/streaming videos in particular)
• Laptops are most commonly used second screen (62%), followed by smartphones (44%), desktop PCs (32%) and tablets (23%). In total some 86% of consumers who own one or more of these devices have second screened. - Whilst people are watching television they are also on their devices- instead of producing television adverts it is more beneficial to produce adverts for second screen devices.