Designer Apparel and Footwear (Ready-To-Wear) in France

PROSPECTS

Optimism in sight

Industry sources believed that conditions in the country had improved towards the end of the review period. This was confirmed in 2017 when inbound tourists returned to Paris and local tourist organisations were fairly optimistic about the expected influx of affluent potential consumers in Paris and the South East of France, the main destination for the purchase of luxury products in France.

Ongoing emergence of millennials

Designer apparel and footwear should also be partially driven by the influence of millennials. The new generation of consumers may not completely break with the traditional dress codes in luxury products; nonetheless, they may be less loyal to a particular brand, mix luxury and non-luxury apparel in their dressing, further switch to online purchases under the influence of social networks and pay less attention to the usual distinction between the genders.

Ethical and sustainable development

Another trend that is expected to continue is “ethical is chic”. In early 2017, LVMH launched a Christian Dior white tee-shirt with a “We should all be feminists” message.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Players need consistency

The recovery that began in autumn 2016 coincided with the improving strategies of some big operators and brands such as Kering and Hermès. This is particularly the case for Gucci, which lost direction before the end of 2016.

Faster turnaround from catwalk to stores

To match the growing number of consumers who appreciate a fast turnaround in fashion, some US brands began to propose easier to access collections. While traditionally, a collection is available one year after a fashion show in designer apparel and footwear, in 2016, Michael Kors abolished the wait between catwalk and stores.

24sevres.com by LVMH could open a new era for online sales

One of the main events in designer apparel and footwear in 2017 was the launch of 24sevres.com, a “second generation luxury web store” that differentiates from web platforms such as Net-a-porter from Richemont, MyTheresa or MatchesFashion with its focus on millennials and the Z generation (born after1999).

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