Clothing And Footwear in Italy

Abstract

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• Get insight into trends in market performance
• Pinpoint growth sectors and identify factors driving change
• Identify market and brand leaders and understand the competitive environment

Product coverage

Clothing; Footwear

Executive summary

Italians like branded and good quality clothes

Traditionally Italians like to dress well and spend money on clothing and footwear. Style, fashion and quality are important components of the purchasing decision, especially in the northern part of the country. This partly derives from the long-standing Italian tradition when it comes to producing fashionable products, like clothes and footwear.

Fashion targeted at both women and men

Most Italians follow fashion, particularly in Milan and in the other big cities of the north and centre of Italy. Milan and Rome are the two most important centres for Italian and international fashion, with designers organising world famous fashion shows. Milan hosts a fashion week every year, at which famous designers present their new clothes collections at fashion shows. Both Italian females and males have a strong sense of fashion. Over the past 5-10 years, males became more interested in fashion and new trends.

Sluggish economy made Italians consider value-for-money clothes

As the economic climate in Italy is sluggish, a growing number of consumers are being forced to consider the value-for-money option. Sales periods accounted for an increasing share of volume sales of clothing and footwear in retail stores, while the cheapest clothes can be found in hypermarkets/supermarkets and public markets.

Cheap Asian imports are increasingly in demand...

The domestic market suffered from the increase in demand for cheaper imported products, particularly those sourced from China and the Far East. The footwear sector was particularly hard hit. As a consequence, Italian manufacturers are now pursuing a global strategy focused on price and service, in order to strengthen the quality image of the "made in Italy" trademark.

...and Italian production is heading East

There was a major shift in production of both clothing and footwear away from Italy to low-cost production locations, primarily in the Far East or Eastern Europe. To compensate for this shift in production, leading Italian manufacturers began to emphasise expertise in product design in order to add value to the finished product.

Independents under pressure from multiples and mass retail

Italian consumers mainly prefer to buy clothing and footwear in independent shops. Usually shops are closer to consumers and offer personal contact, good service and unique pieces of clothing and footwear. However, the position of these independent retailers was weakened by increasing pressure from multiples and hypermarkets/ supermarkets, which are better able to face the new challenges of cheap mass imports than independent outlets.