The online fashion market grows fourfold (+12.5%) compared to total retail in the sector (+3%) in 2024. Italian retailers are already leveraging AI to analyze store performance and consumer trends. Catalog assortment and breadth (38 percent), price (35.6 percent), and fast and efficient returns (26.9 percent) are the key purchase drivers.
According to the most recent Study published by Netcomm, the Italian Digital Commerce Consortium, the 31% of global Fashion sector revenues come from online purchases, with spending from mobile weighing more than half (63% of the total online), and will increase by 9.5% (CAGR) between 2023 and 2029, both in the subcategory ofapparel, and in accessories and footwear. In 2024, the fashion retail market remains stable, with an estimated revenue increase of 3 percent and a value of $1.790 billion in 2024, while, in the same year, the online channel marks an increase of 12.5 percent, which is 4 times the growth rate of offline.
According to Netcomm analysis, companies in Italy are allocating significant investments to improve theonline shopping experience, focusing in particular on wide choice (decisive for 38 percent of buyers), and easy, fast and efficient purchase (decisive for 27.7 percent of users).
The data were presented during the 11th edition of Netcomm Focus Fashion & Lifestyle titled “LEADING CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE: INCREASED, PERSONALIZED, LIVE AND OMNICANAL EXPERIENCES.”
"The data and trends we have observed show that fashion brands today can no longer do without digital. The fashion industry is characterized by a stable 33 percent to 36 percent of online shoppers and is dominated by the Millennials generation, which makes up about 40 percent of all online fashion sales. With this in mind, omnichanneling and the integration of advanced technologies present themselves as critical challenges for fashion brands in 2024, but also as essential elements for securing customer trust and maintaining adequate profit margins. Companies that have increased investment in technology to optimize inventory management and sales channel integration have seen an increase in customer satisfaction ratings as well as an increase in total sales. These results increasingly incentivize the use of the tools made available by advanced technology such as AI, particularly with regard to data and performance analysis and the study of trends aimed at developing innovative services. The goal is to foster meaningful interactions and a highly personalized and fluid shopping experience, crucial elements for digital commerce of the present and future," commented Roberto Liscia, President of Netcomm.
