From North America to Europe, as the epidemic prevention and control measures are being lifted, men are updating their wardrobes to welcome a full resumption of offline office and social life.
"The growth in the menswear business has been very strong, the strongest growth trend I've seen in my career," bob Mitchell, co-CEO of fashion buyers' aggregator Mitchells Stores, described to WWD the current sales trends in the menswear market.
In fact, the market insight he describes also reflects the current global menswear market trends. From the United States and the United Kingdom to France and Italy, men's clothing retailers are experiencing an explosion of business as men gradually return to the office and the recovery of daily social activities, and their desire to spend on men's clothing has also rebounded.
At the same time, this has also greatly promoted the recovery of the men's customized symptom business. The home-from-home work trend driven by the epidemic has led to a downturn in the men's custom formal wear market, such as Men's Wearhouse, Jos. Brands focused on formal wear, such as Bank, Brooks Brothers, Ann Taylor and Loft, declared bankruptcy. Because after working from home, the existence of strict suits has become less necessary, and comfort and cost-effectiveness have become the primary criteria for men to buy clothing during the epidemic.
From the financial elite on Wall Street to European politicians to Hollywood actors, they have all begun to put down their business formal clothes and turn around and throw themselves into the arms of leisure. Second, male consumers' fears about job prospects and reduced incomes have also dampened spending on formal wear. However, as the epidemic gradually improves and the lockdown is gradually lifted, custom men's clothing retailers have seen a strong recovery momentum. In addition, according to retailers' data, sales growth of sports coats, luxury brand sportswear and footwear have exceeded the same period before the epidemic.
Casual comfort has become the first choice for men to buy clothes
Russ Patrick, senior vice president and general manager of menswear at Neiman Marcus, told WWD: "Our sales performance in the spring has been outstanding. Whether online or offline, neiman Marcus' menswear business has grown tremendously. From Amiri to Zegna to Brunello Cucinelli, Christian Louboutin, Dior and Tom Ford, many brands have seen very strong growth. ”
"Last year, our menswear sales level was already above the historical peak, and this year this year this trend is significantly accelerating. Menswear showed overall growth momentum last year, while custom menswear and formal wear did not recover until the end of last year. But now, in addition to seeing casual menswear that continues to grow, men's formal wear has also seen a significant increase. Among them, the return to the office is one of the important reasons, followed by the return of daily social activities such as weddings and holiday trips, which also allows men to re-purchase more casual clothing and formal wear", Russ Patrick continues: "From ready-to-wear to shoes and accessories, sales of the Early Spring collection have shown strong growth across brands and lifestyle products, with each division performing higher than before the pandemic. ”
Neiman Marcus
Louis DiGiacomo, senior vice president of menswear at Saks Fifth Avenue, also told WWD that menswear sales in both physical and online stores continue to grow strongly. "This rise started at the beginning of the fourth quarter of last year," he said. The first quarter of this year started very brightly, with alexander McQueen, Amiri and Dior's haute couture and bespoke apparel, as well as Brunello Cucinelli, Zegna and Isaia's haute couture sportswear being the best performing categories. Secondly, footwear products have also ushered in growth, especially high-end footwear brands. ”
Louis DiGiacomo attributes the surge to the return to the office and the return to social events, which have led to men needing to get out of the house for personal and professional reasons, "when they look through the wardrobe, it feels like everything is outdated, so it's time to buy yourself new clothes." ”
Going forward, Saks is updating its marketing approach to attract male shoppers into stores and will also return to its own campaign, including a "very powerful" display of custom suitcases, he said. The flagship store is finishing up its seventh-floor renovations, which will help increase visibility and interest in the near future.
"Menswear has performed well over the past few years and we are confident that this momentum will continue," Concludes DiGiacomo.
Sam Archibald, general manager of Macy's apparel business, revealed in an interview with WWD that the company's menswear business is doing very well. "For a long time, we've been on the casual street menswear trend, but now men are renewing their wardrobes with sophisticated sportswear, haute couture and bespoke formalwear."
Sam Archibald said he expects casual clothing to continue to lead the growth of the menswear market, followed by formal wear will also usher in overall growth. "Because the pandemic has created a menswear trend that blends more different styles, we still live in a mixed environment, but we are no longer just sitting at home, we have to go out to dinner, go to the office a few days a week, prepare to celebrate Easter or go on vacation with our families, these new lifestyles that incorporate many different scenes have prompted male consumers to be more active in trying new things when buying clothes."
Zegna's Spring/Summer 2022 collection
In addition to clothing, the shoe category is undergoing a transformation. Loafers and formal shoes are returning – whether they are moderately priced brands or luxury brands, Gucci, Ferragamo, Tod's and To Boot are all doing well in the market.
As for the high-priced custom menswear products, Dan Leppo, executive vice president of Bloomingdale's Menswear, Children's And Home Stores, said that the menswear category has been growing for the past six months, "Despite some supply chain issues, the custom menswear market has begun to pick up since Last May." For the next development of custom menswear, Dan Leppo believes: "Although there are still some headwinds in the market, such as geopolitics and global economic downturn risks, we remain optimistic because male consumers' desire to shop has been suppressed for a long time, and with the restart of offline social activities, they are in great need of shopping and updating their wardrobes at this moment." ”
In the European market, menswear sales also ushered in rapid growth. Bosse Myhr, director of men's and women's wear at Selfridges, said the menswear business performed well across all channels. "Judging from the current sales data of Selfridges, the sales of T-shirts and sweatshirts are very impressive. But at the same time, the overall growth of formal wear, runway models and classic categories is also very strong. ”
Stavros Karelis, founder and purchasing director of Machine-A, also said that the menswear business, as a traditional advantage of Machine-A, has performed very well this year, even exceeding the pre-epidemic level. Stavros Karelis said that there is currently a new trend in menswear consumers, that is, female consumers have gradually become the main audience of menswear brands. With the return of the Y2K aesthetic and the more gender-neutral design of brands in design, female consumers can also buy men's wear brands.
Machine-A
Thom Scherdel, Browns Menswear Category Manager, told WWD that the growth of the menswear business was a surprise. "We're seeing healthy growth in the menswear category. We are also cultivating new categories to seek to make them new growth drivers in the business. ”
Thom Scherdel also said: "For now, although the formal product is resuming growth, it is actually not recovering as fast as people think, because the epidemic has caused a lot of changes in the way people dress. Comfort and casualness remains key, with sportswear and casual items being one of the largest segments of our sales. I think men's workwear has shifted to a style that blends casual and formal. Overall, people are enjoying the benefits of blended work and are interested in luxury pieces that strike the best balance between comfort and relaxation to use flexibly in Zoom calls, while also offering versatility and styling options. ”
After a long period of social isolation, men's dress and consumer demand have experienced a long period of depression, which has also made them have a sharply increasing desire and expectation for outings and communication when dressing appropriately. In fact, there is always opportunity behind the crisis. After all, in a year's time, men have developed a new dress habit. With sportswear and casual wear as the growth driver, custom men's wear and suit formal wear will become an important part of the future men's clothing portfolio, jointly promoting the overall recovery of the tailoring menswear market. WWD
Written by Karlie
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