posted by Hannah

Mintel, stats from July 2011, might be useful for competitors in the U.K market

The Consumer – Where They Buy Clothing

This section of the report examines the results of research conducted by Ipsos MORI on behalf of Mintel into which retailer/channel respondents had bought clothing from.

The sample of 1,522 adults aged 15+ was asked the following question in July 2011:

“From which, if any, of these have you bought any clothing for yourself during the last 12 months?”                  

Key points

·         Marks & Spencer remains the most popular retailer of clothing in the UK, and has grown number of shoppers in the last year. More choice in womenswear and focus on quality have been key drivers.

·         Next has regained second position from Primark – where the shock has been Primark actually losing shopper numbers since last year.

·         Primark asserts that they have held fast to their price-led strategy, but anecdotal evidence suggests there have been selective price increases which may have influenced consumer perceptions. Still, Primark may have done a better job of minimising these increases compared to other value retailers.

·         Tesco’s clothing shopper numbers have also fallen this year, and the other supermarkets are also feeling the competitive heat and impact of the economic downturn.

·         Evidence of some consumers trading up to better quality / fashionability is seen in the consistent rise in shopper numbers at House of Fraser, Zara and other specialist clothing shops.

·         John Lewis has also bounced back strongly from last year – its significant investments in new fashion ranges and store environments looks to be paying off.

Consistent winners

·         The only retailers that have increased their percentage of shoppers consistently from the pre-recession days of May 2008 are House of Fraser, Zara and ‘other specialist clothing shops’ (see table below). House of Fraser particularly has moved more upmarket with brands and private label.

·         This indicates that these retailers’ fashionable, differentiated offers are finding more favour even when times are hard for consumers – the trend to perhaps ‘buying less but better’.

Key analysis: In the past year a small but discernable migration to quality is evident. While the following chapters will show many consumers are spending less than before and are being careful it appears that trusted names and value credentials of retailers are performing stronger than those operating on low price alone.

Intensifying competition

·         There is much more overlap in the age and affluence levels of customers as Tesco, Asda and Matalan this year than last year, indicating an intensifying of competition. Also last year Peacocks was closer in this space but is now appealing to the least affluent consumers of all the retailers.

·         Next sits firmly in the middle ground of age and affluence and clearly attracts the younger 25-40 customers that undoubtedly M&S would like more of. But Next needs to watch TK Maxx – with its branded value propositioning it should continue to do well going forward in tough economic times.