Sustainability and omnichannel demands as well as technological innovation in the form of AI is changing the clothing retail market landscape. Clothing retailers in Germany who cater to these demands and innovation are well placed for success in the fashion retail market.
Clothing Retail Market Germany – Current Landscape
Although the clothing retail market Germany is expected to grow in 2024, this outlook is not without its challenges. Clothing retailers in Germany are faced with consumer cautiousness which is further amplified by inflation-driven price sensitivity. This is potentially reshaping spending habits long-term.
Demand for sustainable fashion is on the rise, and clothing retailers in Germany can adopt innovative strategies such as promoting longevity, digital product passports, or second-hand clothing. This is particularly appealing to younger Germans, with nearly half of 16 to 24-year-olds actively engaging in circular fashion practices.
To cater to growing consumer preferences for seamless shopping experiences, retailers should integrate online and offline channels through omnichannel strategies, enhancing options like buy online, pick up in store.
At the same time, retailers can harness AI tools to deliver personalised recommendations and boost customer engagement in the clothing retail market and satisfaction. As digitalisation transforms the clothing retail market Germany, brands that innovate the customer journey – using technologies like augmented reality for immersive shopping – can differentiate themselves in an increasingly competitive market.
Clothing Retail Industry Statistics
- Clothing Retail Market Growth: In 2024, German consumers are expected to spend €65.6bn on clothing, an uplift of 4.5%, driven by an improving economy and rising prices.
- Consumer Behaviour in the Clothing Retail Market Germany: 44% of male fashion shoppers aged 16 to 24 are interested in using artificial intelligence when shopping for clothing online.
Germany Clothing Retail Report – What’s Inside?
Key Topics Analysed in this Report
- The significance of omnichannel retail, addressing the challenges faced by clothing retailers in Germany in balancing online and in-store experiences.
- The crucial role of special occasions in the clothing retail market, underscoring the activation of consumers during events like Christmas through family-centric promotions and festive collections.
- Consumer interest in versatile clothing and mix-and-match collections that support circular fashion practices.
- Loyalty dynamics of German fashion shoppers, stressing the necessity of strengthening relationships with loyal customers via personalised experiences, loyalty programs, and exclusive offers.
- The importance of sustainability in the clothing retail market, focusing on sustainable practices such as extended clothing lifespans, eco-friendly materials, and second-hand clothing.
Meet the Expert Behind the Analysis
This report was written by Silke Lambers, Principal Analyst. Silke joined Mintel in 2022, writing about fashion and retail trends in Germany as a Senior Research Analyst. Prior to this she was a trend forecaster, journalist, and analyst for agencies and companies in the US, UK, France, and Germany. Silke holds a Master’s degree in Fashion Engineering and Design.
Germany’s clothing retail market is experiencing a transformation – with a focus on digitalisation, sustainability, and enhanced consumer engagement – as economic challenges drive the need for innovation in omnichannel retail.
Silke Lambers
Principal Analyst – Fashion, Germany
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Executive summary
- What you need to know
- Opportunities
- Market size and forecast
- Outlook
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Opportunities
- Leverage AI to transform omnichannel retail
- Personalise the shopping journey through AI
- Blend experiential in-store shopping with online convenience
- Increase special occasion sales with tailored experiences
- Leverage special occasions to target families and couples
- Drive seasonal sales with interactive pop-ups and online workshops
- Increase loyalty by delivering on transparency and sustainability
- Unlock consumer loyalty with enhanced transparency around sustainability
- Boost loyalty with personalised digital product passports
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The Consumer
- Shopping channels for purchasing clothing
- Popularity of buying clothes online continues to grow
- In-store fashion shopping remains stable, while more are shopping online
- Graph 1: shopping channels used for purchasing clothing, 2024
- Elevate customer experiences through connected retail
- Graph 2: shopping channel for clothing purchases, 2020-24
- In-store shopping is far from becoming obsolete
- Graph 3: shopping channels used for purchasing clothing, 2024
- In-store shopping has only increased among young consumers
- Graph 4: consumers who shopped online for fashion, by age, 2021-24
- Graph 5: consumers who shopped in store for fashion, by age, 2021-24
- Seamlessly blend in-store sensory engagement with personalised online convenience
- Enhance engagement by prioritising mobile interfaces for young consumers and perfecting desktop interfaces for older consumers
- Graph 6: devices used to purchase fashion online, by generation, 2024
- Meet shoppers where they spend time
- Create seamless shopping experiences to keep up with consumer needs
- Omnichannel tools that will foster transformation
- Retailers used to purchase clothing
- The market for in-store fashion is highly fragmented
- Graph 7: retailers used to purchase clothing in store, 2024
- Marketplaces can cater to various consumer preferences
- Graph 8: retailers used to purchase clothing online, 2024
- Understand the loyalty dynamics of German fashion shoppers
- Graph 9: repertoire analysis of in-store and online retailers, 2024
- Stores remain vital to omnichannel
- Graph 10: usage of omnichannel retailers, in store vs online, 2024
- Deliver online presence to enhance the omnichannel experience
- Gen Z’s preference for online fashion retailers is changing
- Graph 11: retailers used for online fashion purchases by Gen Z, 2022-24
- Important factors when buying clothes
- To drive sales, focus on fit
- Graph 12: important factors when purchasing clothes, ranked from 1 to 3, 2024
- Support consumers to find the right fit
- Graph 13: consumers who find fit important when shopping for clothes, by gender and age, 2024
- Focus on practicality for older consumers and trends for younger consumers
- Graph 14: selected purchases drivers when buying clothing by gender and age, 2024
- Engage young shoppers through building communities
- Important factors shaping fashion brand preferences
- Graph 15: retailers consumers bought clothes at online or in store, by most important factors when buying clothing, 2024
- Give shoppers the feel-good factor
- Appeal to the senses with hyper-physical shops
- Behaviours when shopping for clothing
- Germans show a preference for versatile clothing
- Graph 16: behaviours when purchasing clothing, 2024
- Guide consumers in creating new outfits from pieces already in their wardrobe
- Graph 17: consumers who have bought clothes to combine with items they already have, 2024
- Facilitate wardrobe integration
- Collaborate with digital wardrobe apps
- Implement cross-selling programs that reward customers for purchasing multiple items
- Harness the power of outfit selling in ecommerce
- Graph 18: fashion shoppers who bought clothing and other fashion items from the same retailer in the same shopping trip/online shop, by shopping channel, 2024*
- Leverage special occasions to target families and couples
- Engage consumers through special occasions
- Graph 19: consumers who have bought clothing for special occasions in the last 12 months, by lifestage, 2024
- Parents of minors most eager to spend more for Christmas
- Graph 20: expected change in spending habits for clothing, footwear and accessories as gifts, 2024
- Primark ‘brings Christmas’
- Take advantage of increased fashion shopping around Christmas
- adidas creates sustainable gift wrappings with its customers
- Get jolly with Gen Z
- Graph 21: expected changes in Christmas shopping behaviours, 2024
- Holiday initiatives that will resonate with young fashion shoppers
- Connect to Gen Z with a new, eco-friendly take on Christmas
- Future interest when buying clothing
- Respond to a desire for more-informed choices
- Graph 22: future interest when buying clothing, 2024
- Connect to young fashion shoppers over sustainability
- Graph 23: future interest around clothing purchasing, by generation, 2024
- German fashion consumers are keen on purchasing more sustainable fashion
- German fashion consumers are keen on purchasing more-sustainable fashion
- DPPs as a service idea
- Appeal to young parents with sustainable fashion
- Graph 24: consumers who chose a more-sustainable clothing retailer over another, 2024
- Longevity is more appealing than sustainability
- Graph 25: when shopping for clothes for myself it is most important to me that they are…, by gender and age, 2024
- Facilitate circularity amoung young fashion consumers
- Address the issue of excess clothing
- Circular fashion aligns with young consumers’ preferences
- Graph 26: behaviour when shopping for clothing in the past 12 months, by retailer shopped with, 2024
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RETAILER ACTIVITY and innovation
- Retailer strategies
- H&M demonstrated an upward trend in performance in 2023
- Zalando increases profitability and accelerates revenue growth in Q2, 2024
- Hugo Boss adjusts 2024 focus to margins and cost control
- P & C Düsseldorf restructures to achieve stability
- Deichmann has secured the rights for Esprit
- Inditex expands its logistics, retail and sustainability strategies
- OTTO generates a GMV of €6.5bn in 2023
- Amazon expands its logistics and leverages AI innovations
- Aldi Süd centralises non-food buying department
- Launch activity and innovation
- Mango launches AI-powered campaign for sunset dream collection
- Virtual models are transforming fashion advertising
- Amazon improves AI tools and enters the ultra-fast fashion realm
- Zalando’s AI-powered shopping assistants
- Otto introduces AI-driven product creation, automated logistics and personalised shopping experiences
- ASOS introduces AI chatbot, allowing shoppers to haggle
- Brands start to introduce DPPs…
- …and foster transparency and exclusivity
- Retail expansion
- Hugo Boss opens new flagship store in Düsseldorf
- Second-hand goes high-end
- Kik expands with Dutch online shop and new Cologne pop-up store
- P&C revamps retail strategy with mixed-use spaces, Milan expansion and online focus
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market
- Market drivers
- Household spending rising faster than spending on clothing and footwear
- Graph 27: average spending per month and household, 2017-24*
- Rising inflation in clothing and footwear
- Graph 28: consumer price index for clothing and footwear, 2014-23
- Confidence of fashion shoppers is rising
- Graph 29: consumers behaviours towards buying clothes, 2022-24
- Golden quarter is the strongest in fashion retail
- Graph 30: chain index of retail turnover in clothing per quarter, 2018-24
- AI-powered fashion shopping appeals to young consumers
- Graph 31: consumers who would feel comfortable following the recommendations of AI when buying clothing, by age group, 2024
- Lead the charge for sustainability
- Graph 32: products that sustainability is considered important for, 2024
- Market size
- Clothing specialist sales still influenced by cost-of-living crisis and inflation
- Graph 33: specialist clothing retailers’ sales (excl VAT), 2014-24
- Clothing specialist retailers’ sales and forecast
- Specialist sales expected to grow slower than consumer spending
- Consumer spending
- Consumer spending on clothing has increased in 2024
- Graph 34: consumer spending on clothing (incl VAT), € bn, 2019-24
- Forecast for consumer spending on clothing
- Fashion market poised for growth amidst stabilising trends and rising competition
- Distribution channels
- Clothing specialists are searching for their new role in fashion retailing
- Graph 35: specialist clothing retailers’ share of total spending on clothing, 2015-24
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Appendix
- Abbreviations
- Methodology – consumer research
- Consumer research methodology
- A note on language
- Generations
- Methodology – market size and forecast
- Forecast methodology
- Forecast methodology – fan chart
- Market size – value – specialist retailers’ sales and forecast
- Market forecast and prediction intervals – value – specialists
- Market size – value – consumer spending and forecast
- Market forecast and prediction intervals – value – consumer spending
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