One year on: current spending habits show consumers are prioritising premium athleisure over premium fashion, CACI reveals
CACI, the data specialists focused on people and place, have revealed a notable shift in consumer spend, towards athleisure-focused brands and fitness, and away from equally premium fashion retailers that focus more on formal and casualwear.
The trend has become evident through analysis of CACI’s Brand Dimensions platform, which tracks £4bn of monthly spend across 300 brands. In spring 2023, CACI found that despite inflationary pressures, higher average transaction value (ATV) retail brands like Reiss, Sunglass Hut, and Patagonia experienced strong growth in sales. A little over a year later, these brands have failed to build on that momentum, while those to have seen considerable drops in spend also include & Other Stories (-23%), Mint Velvet (-22%), Flannels (-19%), and Ralph Lauren (-13%), comparing May 2023 with May 2024.
By comparison, premium sportswear brands such as Gym Shark (+51%), lululemon (+24%), and Sweaty Betty (+20%) are significantly up on sales year-on-year, and indeed lululemon – which has the highest ATV of the three – has had sales growth in each of the past 12 months. The wellness market overall is capturing large amounts of consumer spend, with gyms also benefitting, a trend that spans accessible and premium operators, from The Gym Group (+16%), to Virgin Active (+106%) and Third Space (+31%).
The Brand Dimensions data therefore indicates that premium fashion as a category continues to attract consumer spend, but the brands with a core formal and casualwear fashion offering are currently losing out to those with a comprehensive own-brand sportwear collection, or dedicated athleisure concept.
Rachael Bedford, Principal Consultant at CACI, commented: “What a difference a year makes. Our Brand Dimensions data paints the picture of a consumer trend to invest in high-end athleisure and wellness, as many premium fashion brands outside of this space struggle to build on the momentum we identified in spring 2023. Whilst traditional premium brands are losing their grip on their fashion market share, consumers are choosing to expand their wardrobes with high-end athleisure clothing, signalling a new wave of premium fashion with fitness ingrained.
“We’re seeing many high street retailers release own-brand fitness lines, no doubt because they’re also seeing athleisure go from strength to strength. As people continue to place more attention to their outgoings, it’s never been so important for retail to remain agile, responding to changing consumer behaviour to capture discretionary spend in a seriously competitive space.”
This announcement follows data revealed by CACI’s latest consumer survey, highlighting the growth potential within the travel sector this summer. CACI found that 40% of the UK’s holidaymakers are aiming to spend more time on holiday compared to last year, a trend already being reflected across travel-oriented brands and major UK shopping destination performance.