It doesn’t come as a surprise, but the conclusions from enquiring our Panel of Experts of the World Footwear Business Conditions Survey point to a continuation of the trend around sneakers and sports related footwear. Read more about it today
Digital channels are increasingly important and during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, many retail businesses had to quickly adjust from in-store to digital sales. More then ever, the focus seems to be on the digital
Since the first edition of the World Footwear Business Conditions Survey conducted in the second semester of 2019, this is the most positive result obtained: traders and manufacturers are extremely optimistic about footwear sales
The average export price of footwear has increased by more than 30% in the last decade. As new pressure points are felt in the footwear market, our experts believe that by 2025 the average footwear export price could be above 12 US dollars
We asked our panel about their expectations regarding the evolution of footwear consumption in 2022, both in their home countries and globally. Expectations are cautious, despite the growth forecast, as a moderate rise is anticipated
The Plan B enacted by the UK's Government to fight the new wave of the COVID-19 pandemic will lead to a significant drop in footfall, especially in central London
The expected retail boost from the Olympic games never took place in Japan, and the retail index is still below the normal pace registered before the pandemic. With the lifting of the State of Emergency things are expected to improve. If retailers are still lacking confidence, consumers seem to have improved their mood. However, with a rising expecting about the growth of prices, this could negatively impact the good mood of consumers and further deteriorate the confidence of retailers
There is a rising expectation about the evolution of footwear prices in the coming months. Our experts anticipate prices to continue to rise, as a result of several pressure points impacting the business. Get access to the latest Business Conditions report and find out more today
According to the GfK's Consumer Index, consumer confidence in the UK grew by three points in November, on a comparable basis to the previous month, despite concerns over surging inflation
The Retail Sales Index in the US Shoe Stores has registered a favourable pace between March and August, which could give good perspectives for the near future. However, footwear retail gains are dwindling, closing at only 4 percentage points upside in August, after 11pp above the line in March. On top of that the consumers’ mood is plunging again and with inflation entering a danger zone in the US, retailers have reasons to be worried, especially if footwear prices stay in the upper range for a longer time
Although COVID-19 is still one of the topics of the moment, most of the experts of the World Footwear Business Conditions Survey believe the coming months will be positive with favourable expectations about the levels of employment in the business
Despite the backdrop of inflation concerns and rising household bills, overall consumer card spending grew by 14.2% in October, compared to the same period in 2019. The latest update comes from Barclaycard
In recent months, the Textile Retail Index (including Clothing & Footwear) in Germany compares well to the pre-pandemic 2019 data. However, one must remember that 2019 was a terrible year for the German economy. As we write this Retail Flash, the consumer price index for footwear is following the upwards movement of prices in general and retailers are now looking on how to offset higher costs of raw materials and logistics in footwear imported from overseas. That said, it seems too early to claim victory on the retail performance in Germany
Retail Sales Index in specialized stores in Spain are still some 20 percentage points below the pre-pandemic levels, registered in 2019. Confidence seems to be improving for consumers and retailers, but importers are more cautious. Online continues with a good performance, however, the online share is not enough to push retail up. Developments in the coming months will reveal the way for retail in Spain
The increase in French footwear imports from May onwards reflects the reaction of importers following the COVID-19 wave earlier in the year. In the third quarter of the current year, consumers’ confidence and footwear retail figures have shown a return to the pre-pandemic levels. In this scenario, the expectation is that footwear sales could accelerate soon, even before the year ends