Higher-priced clothing is more buoyant than fast fashion in 2023

We’ve heard about how challenging fashion sales have been in recent months, but there are strong signs that some consumers are choosing quality over quantity in a cost-of-living crunch. And brand advocate recommendations are critical in the process.

That’s according to data from British brand advocacy firm Mention Me. It looked at 500 brands to understand shopper shopping habits and said higher-priced items outsold fast fashions.

It said fashion industry sales fell by 2% in Q1 2023 compared to the same period in 2022, but average order volume grew by 8%, driven by a preference for higher-priced labels.

The Mention Me 500 brands saw 20 million transactions in the study period over 2022 and 2023 and it appears that fashion brands with higher price points experienced 6% greater year-over-year order growth compared to fast fashion.

Fashion was the third best performing retail sector in the first quarter of the year, with only financial services and travel/hospitality experiencing higher growth.

Additionally, fashion has a higher repetition rate than any other sector with 11% of consumers making a second purchase within 30 days.

Interesting also said Mention Me RReferrals from friends and family have increased 16% year-over-year, showing how recommendations are increasingly influencing purchases.

The rate at which advocates share with friends increased from a 5.9% sharing rate to 7.3%.

That matters because data shows that fashion advocates bring in customers who spend more than non-supporters.

The best performing subcategory was fashion accessories and footwear with 70% year-on-year growth and 260% increase in order volume (reference driven). This was followed by growth in menswear and then womenswear, both of which also grew positively.

Simon Dring, COO of Mention Me, says: The fashion sector is full of potential brand advocates. Friends often compliment each other on their outfits, which naturally leads to sharing origins and referencing the brands in question. Better yet, referred customers tend to spend more and return more frequently than those acquired through other channels. That presents a huge opportunity for brands to grow a very valuable customer base.

Our data shows that consumers prefer quality over quantity, reflecting a marked shift in consumer sentiment. The cost of living crisis, combined with sustainability concerns around fast fashion, is driving consumers to buy less of the higher quality clothes that will last longer.

And Ben Henshall, Data Analyst at Mention Me, adds: We often see peak holiday bookings in January and February, while the April tax deadline drives peak orders for financial services. It’s been interesting to see fashion up there in terms of order numbers earlier in the year.