Fashion and the coronavirus: survival of the fittest – why some brands won’t make it, and how those that do must adapt
- Labels that fall between being a fashion and a heritage brand, like Hermès, will fare better than luxury brands relying on bold new styles for their collections
- Brands that stay the course will move sales more online, and frivolity will be out; the big question is: will consumers still have an appetite to shop?
A single double-decker bus carrying key workers sails unimpeded down an otherwise deserted Regent Street in London. On Paris’ Rue Saint-Honoré, masked policemen stand in front of closed stores, fining anyone caught more than 2km from their residence. Along Fifth Avenue and down in the West Village and Nolita, the storied shopping streets of New York are empty, and the sound of birdsong can be heard for the first time.
From the closed apparel factories of China to the empty stores of the world’s style capitals, the coronavirus has decimated the luxury fashion industry, bringing retail sales to a grinding halt.
Near-term statistics are almost universally apocalyptic, but the long-term coronavirus punch in the gut will prove much more painful for certain retailers – and regions – than others.
“So far the coronavirus has been devastating,” says luxury adviser Mario Ortelli. “This is the only positive I can find, but slowly Asia appears to be coming back, and recovering a bit. Now Europe and America are the centre of the storm – which means they can look to Asia to see what might happen, and then simply try to survive for that long.”
Survival will take work. According to a report surrounding the effects of Covid-19 on the retail industry compiled by consulting company McKinsey in partnership with online trade publication Business of Fashion, global fashion industry sales are expected to fall by 27-30 per cent, and sales of the personal luxury goods industry by 35-39 per cent, in 2020. Across the board, total luxury sales are expected to drop by up to US$650 billion from 2019 levels.
