Fashion Business Intelligence

Valentine’s Week Spark: UK Fashion defies deluge to drive growth

The UK retail sector recorded its third consecutive week of growth as Valentine's Day celebrations provided a much-needed boost to discretionary spending. According to the latest BDO High Street Sales Tracker, total like-for-like (LFL) sales increased by +2.05%, a resilient performance against a strong +4.72% base from the previous year. The...

Shoppers beat January blues, boosting retail sales

Retail sales volumes are estimated to have risen 1.8 percent in January, a positive jump off the back of a more subdued Christmas period, as heavy discounting persuaded shoppers to open their wallets. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), growth was bolstered by artwork and antiques sales, as well as continued strong sales from...

Retail Insights Report 2025: The evolution of buying in fashion retail

Fashion retail has reached a structural inflection point as the industry shifts from intuition-based buying to data-first decision-making. According to the 'Retail Insights Report 2025' by US-based B2B platform NuORDER by Lightspeed, 68 percent of senior retail leaders now rely on quantitative data as their primary forecasting tool. The study,...

Rising employment costs threaten retail jobs new BRC survey reveals

The retail sector is already under pressure, balancing a fragile economy and low consumer confidence. The implementation of the Employment Rights Act, which came into force in January, could only heighten this pressure, with a new report from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) emphasising particular concern regarding labour costs. The...

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Mid-market fashion reinvents itself: Why AW25 pricing signals industry shift

The autumn/winter 2025/26 season signals more than just another round of price increases in the fashion industry. It marks a broader shift among mass and mid-market brands attempting to create value in an uneven global economy. A new report from Retviews, an AI-powered intelligence platform by Lectra, has revealed that mid-market players have...

Valentine’s sparks online growth as In-Store Fashion enters 6th week of gains

The UK retail sector saw a gentle lift in the lead-up to St. Valentine’s Day, with total like-for-like (LFL) sales increasing by +1.34%. While this growth builds on a +2.61% base from the previous year, the week was defined by a clear shift toward digital shopping as unsettled Atlantic weather and a low-pressure system deterred some shoppers...

BRC: Retailers adopt cautious optimism as footfall remains flattish in January

New figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and Sensormatic have revealed a slight drop in footfall for the UK in January. Despite a decrease of 0.6 percent year-over-year, performance was more promising than the disappointing Christmas period, during which footfall fell 2.9 percent. High streets experienced the sharpest drop at 1.9...

France: Key insights for understanding fashion's transformations in 2026

What drivers will shape the French apparel market in the coming months? Experts from the Economic Observatory met this Thursday at the Institut Français de la Mode (IFM), where they shared their key insights on 2025 to better anticipate the challenges and opportunities awaiting fashion players in 2026. According to the latest data from INSEE and...

Bad Bunny and Zara dethrone Rihanna to become artist with greatest impact in Super Bowl history

There is currently no space, physical or virtual, worldwide where the historic performance of Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny during the 2026 Super Bowl halftime show is not being discussed. What might seem like a personal impression is, in fact, a confirmed reality. The initial economic analyses of the singer's performance last Sunday at Levi's...

UK retail sales pick up in January

Following a disappointing December, total retail sales picked up in the UK during January, as discounting enticed shoppers. Over the month, sales rose 2.7 percent year-on-year, increasing against a growth of 2.6 percent at the beginning of 2025, new BRC figures have shown. January performance came above a 12-month average growth of 2.3 percent,...