Sales of women's dresses in US surpassed pre-pandemic levels: NPD

Almost one-third of US consumers are purchasing dresses for an evening or special occasion, according to the Consumer Tracking Service from NPD. In addition, 14 per cent plan to attend a wedding this summer, based on findings from an NPD survey conducted in conjunction with CivicScience.

Maria Rugolo, apparel industry analyst at NPD, said: “Dresses are making a strong comeback, after being one of the most hard-hit areas of the apparel market when the pandemic began. The trend today is on both sides of the spectrum: the casual and the ultra-dressy.

“Hybrid styles that can be worn for work, weekends, and weddings are winning the most on the men’s dressy side of the business. Suit sales are yet to recover, as consumers are favouring more versatile, mix-and-match options.”

Footwear trends are following in apparel’s footsteps. This year, high heels have gained market share at the expense of lower heel heights, as women buy shoes to wear for special occasions. “Dress footwear sales are also shifting away from pumps — a more conservative and work-oriented style — to open-toe sandals, which are more occasion-oriented,” said Beth Goldstein, fashion footwear and accessories analyst at NPD.

Tying the wardrobe together, sales of evening bags grew faster than the rest of the handbag market this year, versus last year. Evening bags recovered to 2019 levels, in terms of both revenue and unit sales, according to the Retail Tracking Service from NPD.

Men are also homing in on hybrid styles when it comes to their dress footwear: the sneaker bottom style now captures about one-third of the sales revenue for men’s oxfords, drivers, and loafers, compared to less than 20 per cent in 2019, according to NPD Retail Tracking data.

“Although still not back to pre-pandemic sales levels, men’s dress footwear is showing a strong recovery and is the fastest-growing area of the men’s market, comping against a particularly challenged year,” said Goldstein. “Looking at pockets of growth compared to pre-pandemic 2019, the men’s market is all about the hybrid footwear styles.”

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KD)