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Fast fashion brands Shein and Uniqlo, and secondhand resellers Depop and Grailed are significantly outpacing their competitors, according to a new report from consumer data company Consumer Edge.
Consumer Edge’s “The State of Retail 2025: Apparel, Accessories and Footwear” analyzed United States transaction data to identify categories and brands on the rise, as well as those facing challenges.
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So far in 2025, spend growth for apparel, luxury goods and department stores has lagged behind overall U.S. spend growth. Specifically, apparel, accessories and footwear has seen -2 percent growth year to date, luxury goods -7 percent growth, and department stores just 2 percent growth.
While apparel has seen overall declines, some categories have enjoyed solid gains, particularly those catering to budget-minded shoppers. Fast fashion was up 5 percent year over year in January and February, fueled by brands such as Shein and Uniqlo, who outpaced competitors H&M and Zara. Consignment and thrift retail also saw a 5 percent growth rate during the same period, with platforms such as Depop and Grailed leading the charge. Resale stalwart Poshmark lagged behind its competitors likely due to tech disadvantages and fallout from the platform’s fee structure changes of last year, according to the report.
While wallet-friendly brands have seen gains, luxury categories have struggled. Single-brand luxury—such as Chanel, Dior and Gucci—dropped 6 percent in year-over-year spend, and luxury jewelry spending declined by 2 percent. Multibrand luxury platforms such as Ssense and Net-a-Porter saw an astounding 22 percent drop in year-over-year sales.
“Multibrand platforms have been forced to contend with increased intra-sector competition from new entrants and concerted efforts by top luxury brands to build up their own DTC efforts, against the backdrop of a broader slowdown in luxury sales,” the report said.
Footwear and athletic apparel also has seen declines, with a 6 percent year-over-year consumer spend decrease.
Consumer Edge’s report also highlighted several brands on the rise, exhibiting the highest growth rates in consumer spending this year. Womenswear brands Lagence, Modlily and Halara all landed in the top 20 companies list, as did Quince, which was named the top grower by Consumer Edge last year. Grailed and Depop also landed on this list, as did jewelry brands Rare Carat, Ring Concierge and David Yurman.