About the market…

In 2004 the UK clothing market reached £37 billion, including sales tax, representing a 4.2% growth on 2003. Consumer spending has also continued to grow at a figure of 18.8% since 2000. However, it would seem that deflation is also set to continue, partly due to the weak dollar and the abolition of quotas from china, but also due to the downward pressures on price which consumers have come to expect.

The top five clothing retailers, M&S, Next, Arcadia Group, Matalan and BHS, claimed 44% of sector sales in 2004 making the UK one of the most concentrated clothing sectors in Europe. In spite of this, value-led retailers, such as TK Maxx, ASDA (George range) and Tesco outperformed the rest of the market, continuing to be the fastest growing channel and generating £2 billion in clothing sales. Next retail also continued to grow, overtaking the Arcadia Group and moving into second place behind M&S.

About Mintel’s research

Pooling together the most innovative consumer research and latest market analysis, Mintel’s new report offers you all the insight and inspiration you need for conducting intelligent, targeted, and profitable business in the clothing retail market. Use Mintel’s research to:

Gain further insight into the present UK clothing market, its value and trends, its channels of distribution and the factors affecting it

Find out about the specialist sector, retailers’ market share and their sales performance

Pin point market potential before your competitors

Gain information about consumer trends, their shopping patterns, what they buy and where they buy it.

Discover more about what improvements customers would like to see in store and what would influence them to shop differently, enabling you to tailor your business accordingly.

Gather in-depth information about consumer target groups, including key demographics and media targeting information

Find out how best to reach key audiences with the most effective marketing communications

View detailed clothing retail company profiles including information on their market share, background, finances, outlets and products

Gain insight into future trends, measure market forecasts and build realistic business models

Intriguing Findings

Third age and retired groups are also frustrated shoppers – Some 18% of third age consumers and as many as 30% of retired people said they struggle to find clothing suitable for their age group. The retail industry is failing this growing group of consumers. Despite a different attitude towards fashion than previous generations, their desire to buy is being stifled by lack of appropriate choice. This problem is also particularly prevalent among female shoppers (19%).

A third of shoppers say they tend to buy clothes that won’t go out of fashion, almost three times as many as those who like to keep up with the latest trends.