European Footwear Retail Sales & Price Reports

Recap for March 2020  With the release of the latest European retail sales data from Eurostat, we have our first look at March overall retail sales and sales by key sub-sectors, including sales of textiles, clothing, and footwear in specialized stores. Starting from a broader perspective, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, overall retail demand across the 27-member European Union shrank a seasonally-adjusted -8.2% year-over-year in March, its worst showing on record. While most countries saw retail demand falter year-over-year, gains in several smaller markets including Hungary (+3.5%), Romania (+3.1%), Ireland (+3.0%), and  Estonia(+2.9%) partially offset the broad-based tumble, mitigating an otherwise-steeper collapse across the region. FDRA members can read the full E.U. Footwear Retail Report by clicking here. 

European Retailers Gear Up For Gradual Openings

As lockdown measures slowly begin to ease up across Europe, retailers are rushing to prepare for the reopening phase, and it’s proving to be a complicated affair. Seeking to virus-proof the shopping experience — and working conditions — owners are bulking up on supplies of disinfectants, hand sanitizer and masks, erecting plexiglass protection at cashier stands, calculating the number of customers who can browse a store while respecting social distancing, and sifting through a slew of local and national rules. Germany began allowing stores to open two weeks ago, and retailers in Italy and France are gearing up for store openings starting May 11. Read the full article here

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EU Footwear Import Update Reflecting Year-to-Date Shipments through February 2020

Footwear imports entering the European Union rose in the latest month, expanding year-over-year both in euro terms (up 6.0%) and in volume terms (+1.1%). First, at €4.91 billion, the value of footwear entering the EU climbed to the biggest February on record and the fourteenth straight month of year-over-year gains. The value of imports from key suppliers China (up 0.5%), Italy (+4.9%), Germany (up 1.9%), and Vietnam (+2.1%) all rose from twelve months earlier, with shipments from the latter three reaching the biggest February on record. Given the streak of growth in the euro value of imports in recent months, evidence early in 2020 suggests the  full-year  value of footwear shipments into the region may climb to a record in 2020. However, we caution this is before any lost business due to fallout from the coronavirus that is likely to dim this upbeat outlook. The  volume  of February imports fared almost as well, up 1.1%. In fact, February marks the fifteenth time in the last sixteen months that the value of imports grew faster than the volume, implying the average unit cost rose again in this latest month, up 4.9% year-over-year. At 21.14 euros per kg, the average unit cost of EU footwear imports rose to the highest February on record. It remains to be seen if European shoe shoppers will be as willing to pay more in 2021 at the checkout register. FDRA members can read the full EU Footwear Import Report by clicking here.

What Green Recovery Policy Could Mean for Fashion

Whether a company chooses   to abandon or prioritize sustainability initiatives post-pandemic is their business — or until sweeping green recovery proposals, notably championed by the European Union and other entities, come to fruition. The call-to-action rings like a defunct alarm clock: “2020 will be the most important year for climate action,” proclaimed Claire O’Neill, reporting after the less-than-climactic United Nations COP25 summit in Madrid in December. She was supposed to spearhead the COP26 summit in Glasgow, Scotland, in November — since postponed to 2021 due to the ongoing effects of COVID-19. Read the full article here