Personal Accessories in the US

COVID-19 impact on personal accessories

Due to several factors including economic constraints, the discretionary nature of many of its product categories, their relative uselessness during quarantines, and their dependence on store-based retail channels, in addition to the decimation of travel and tourism, personal accessories is among the consumer-facing industries most negatively impacted by Coronavirus (COVID-19). Without an opportunity to show off their bags, jewellery, and watches at work or during important, large social gatherings, consumers with sufficient discretionary income are instead purchasing items that can make their increased time at home more comfortable, such as sports-inspired athleisure apparel, furniture, home décor, or electronics.

COVID-19 country impact

As early as 31 January 2020 US health officials issued quarantine orders to US citizens evacuated from Wuhan, China, amid the COVID-19 outbreak there. From 2 February, entry was restricted from China, with this later extended to virus-hit Iran and Italy.

Company response

Personal accessories is generally a fragmented market featuring a large number of large, multinational players as well as small, local brands. All of these compete for consumers’ attention and discretionary dollars.

Retailing shift

With the bulk of personal accessories sales having occurred through department sores and the respective product categories’ specialist retailers, including bags and luggage specialist retailers, as well as jewellery and watch specialist retailers, prior to the COVID-19 crisis, the closure of these retail channels under government-mandated lockdowns has had a significant dampening effect on sales across product categories. While sales of personal accessories have been able to continue unabated across much of the country through retailers deemed essential, such as hypermarkets and warehouse clubs, these channels represented only a small percentage of sales prior to the pandemic.

What next for personal accessories?

While personal accessories sales faced similar declines during the Global Financial Crisis of 2007-2009, they rebounded quickly in the following years as consumers regained lost wealth and confidence. However, the nature of the current crisis being both financial and health-related is expected to result in a slower recovery for many personal accessories categories, as consumers’ newly formed spending habits solidify and manifest further moving forward.

Files are delivered directly into your account within a few minutes of purchase.