| Children’s fashion is on the rise. “Back-to-school is not just a time to stock up, but also a time for kids to express themselves. Back-to-school has become their red carpet,” says Andres Dorronsoro, vice president and general manager for Old Navy Kids, which has the third-largest market share of childrenswear brands worldwide. “Kids are more aware of trends than ever before.”
Boosted by the “infiltration of fashion into children’s clothing,” the global children’s market racked up sales of €135.6 billion in 2015, up from €122.1 billion in 2010, according to Bernadette Kissane, an analyst at Euromonitor. And while kid’s clothing only accounts for 12 percent of the overall apparel market, in the last five years, growth in childrenswear has outpaced that of both menswear and womenswear. In 2015, childrenswear sales grew 6 percent, while the men’s and women’s markets each grew 4 percent.
Demographic shifts are one major driver of this growth. In 2014, the birth rate in the United States began to rise again, after dropping every year since 2007. Parents in the US and UK are also having children later in life, when they have more disposable income to spend on bigger wardrobes for their children, or trade up their purchases to higher-end brands.
The middle of the market is hollowing out, however. ”Similarly to adult clothing, the market is experiencing a level of polarisation that favours both value and designer, leaving mid-tier players — in particular, childrenswear specialists — struggling to regain lost market share," says Kissane. At the high-street level, children’s clothing has begun to imitate adult clothing, as parents’ desire for their children to be “on-trend” has increased and their consumption habits have shifted towards more frequent purchases.
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