Foreword
Standing at the end of 2019, looking back on the development of the apparel industry over the past year, it is not difficult to find that although the entire industry has faced various problems and tests during this year, it cannot be denied that Over the past year, through continuous transformation and upgrading and diligent exploration, China’s clothing industry has not only had more possibilities to nurture the future, but has also been able to turn various possibilities into tangible realities.
In this year, the clothing industry has experienced online and offline integration, e-commerce live broadcasts are booming, With the rise of national fashion brands, the sharp increase in market segments, and the continuous changes in fashion methods, it has also experienced the pain of market shrinkage for fast fashion brands. Careful people can find that the “play” of the clothing industry, just like fashion design itself, is full of changes and uncertainties, but amidst these changes and uncertainties, it is not without rules.
“Dual-line” integration accelerates channel upgrades
In today’s world, every minute In an era when some people are calling for “buying something”, online shopping has become an indispensable part of people’s lives. With the diversification of shopping channels and consumption upgrading, consumers’ shopping needs are constantly changing. Many companies strive to meet consumers’ convenient shopping needs and emotional appeals, increase customer stickiness and favorability, and thereby enhance brand value. .
Currently, the transformation and upgrading of the retail industry has entered a new stage. Online retail and physical retail have gone from being incompatible to being incompatible with each other. The relationship between online and offline has begun to be reshaped. . The digital construction of physical retail companies is accelerating, and online retail companies are also rapidly expanding offline channels, and omni-channel development has become a trend. Enterprises have also developed from a single business format to multiple business formats, from single retail to a combination of retail and services, and a number of new business formats and new models have emerged.
Especially with the advent of the 5G era, the O2O clothing retail model can turn virtual fitting rooms, 3D displays and other virtual experiences of fitting and matching into reality, and can provide online Online and offline simultaneous price comparisons, consumer appointments for fittings, personalized customization and other services. For clothing retail companies, O2O means that consumers can choose and place an order through an online sales platform, and then try it on and pick it up in an offline physical store; or they can try it on in an offline physical store first, and then buy it online through mobile electronic devices. Choose your style and place your order to pay. The O2O model combines the advantages of online virtual stores and offline physical stores. While improving consumers’ personal experience, it also effectively solves the disadvantages of limited goods in traditional stores.
It is foreseeable that with the advent of the digital era, consumers’ lifestyles will change again, and the boundaries between online and offline will become increasingly blurred. In 2019, more and more clothing companies and brands accelerated the further integration of online and offline. If omni-channel was still in the exploratory stage a few years ago, now there are many mature cases that successfully integrate online and offline.
In 2019, Shandong Ruyi proposed a “smart retail strategy” in response to challenges centered on consumer experience. It will take three years to create thousands of Ruyi smart stores, realizing one person, one board Intelligent personalized customization for one person, using the most active fashion intelligence elements to build intelligent online and offline retail terminals, to promote the innovation of technological intelligent production chain and create a new fashion industry ecosystem .
For another example, at Uniqlo, after consumers place an order online, hundreds of offline stores support convenient pick-up within 24 hours; at Peacebird, through the dimensions of goods, payment and other aspects, , supporting new businesses such as consumers scanning QR codes in stores and picking up items in stores; the men’s clothing brand Common Gender has adopted an omni-channel sales model that combines online and offline as soon as it is launched.
In 2019, models such as online ordering and offline pickup, or offline experience and online purchase have become a major trend in the clothing industry.
It is particularly worth mentioning that on January 12, 2019, the Yudu Pulse Intelligent Manufacturing Fashion Industrial Park invested by Huimei Group, after more than a year of preparation, Then it officially opened. As a “dark horse” in online clothing, Huimei Group’s move to “get involved” in offline entities has caused quite a stir in the industry.
The O2O transformation of clothing retail companies has changed the hostile situation between online and offline in the traditional e-commerce environment. It has not only opened up new avenues for offline sales for clothing e-commerce companies, but also Importantly, it also provides new development opportunities for traditional clothing retail companies that have not yet promoted e-commerce transformation or whose transformation is not ideal. In the future, online and offline integration will be an obvious development trend in the clothing retail industry.
Segmentation and positioning are not afraid of market decline
A few years ago, Everyone is quarreling over whether consumption should be “upgraded” or “downgraded.” Now, the new point of view is not about rising or falling, but consumption grading and market segmentation. Nowadays, people’s living space has become highly stratified, and there are huge differences in the consumption needs, consumer psychology and value perceptions of different circles. With the development of the economy, consumers’ consumption habits have become more mature, and consumer demands have become more diversified and personalized, thus forming different market segments.
In today’s clothing consumer market, it is difficult to produce so-called “big hits”. The styles of clothing are more diversified, and there are more and more niche products or vertical products. In 2019, in the clothing segment, in addition to traditional�58% believe there should be less waste this year, and a further 42% say they will reduce waste by buying second-hand goods.
In fact, the decline of fast fashion is not without trace. From Esprit’s performance failure, Marks & Spencer’s failure to exit the Chinese market and shrinking the scale of its fashion business, to New Look’s withdrawal from China and closing its men’s clothing business, to the slowdown in performance growth of ZARA, H&M and other brands, everyone is alert: the winter of fast fashion has already begun Advent.
Some people in the industry said that whether it is Forever 21, Topshop, or La Chapelle, this type of product obviously lacks differentiation and originality, especially in terms of consumers’ consumption concepts. At the moment of awakening, unoriginal and cheap products have faded out of the sight of the main consumer groups.
As the market becomes more and more mature and consumers become more and more “smart”, the biggest trump cards in the fast fashion industry, “speed” and “cheapness” are gradually becoming more attractive. All disappeared, and the industry did not have much time left for fast fashion. </p
