Apparel Retail Industry Statistics

Apparel prices in the U.S. increased 0.3% year over year in 2023 [1]

Men’s apparel prices fell 2.3% over the year ended December 2023 [1]

Women’s apparel prices increased 1.3% over the year ended December 2023 [1]

Footwear prices rose 1.7% over the year ended December 2023 [1]

CoreSight found that 76.2% of U.S. consumers bought clothing in a store in the prior 12 months [2]

55.3% of U.S. consumers bought clothing online in the prior 12 months [2]

43.4% of U.S. consumers purchased clothing from Amazon in the prior 12 months [2]

26.0% of U.S. consumers bought clothing from Walmart in the prior 12 months [2]

20.1% of U.S. consumers bought clothing from Target in the prior 12 months [2]

67% of consumers said price is the most important factor when shopping for apparel [3]

54% of consumers said they were cutting back on clothing purchases due to inflation [3]

72% of Gen Z said they would switch brands for better value [3]

58% of apparel shoppers said finding the right fit is their biggest challenge when shopping online [4]

41% of apparel shoppers have returned clothing due to poor fit [4]

37% of apparel shoppers intentionally buy multiple sizes and return unwanted items [4]

73% of apparel shoppers say free returns are important when buying clothing online [4]

62% of consumers said inflation changed the way they shop for apparel in 2023 [5]

36% of consumers reported buying more secondhand fashion because of inflation [5]

29% of consumers said they delayed fashion purchases due to higher prices [5]

80% of U.S. consumers waited for discounts before buying apparel in 2023 [6]

49% of U.S. consumers said apparel is a category where they actively compare prices online [6]

34% of consumers said loyalty rewards influence where they buy clothing [6]

52% of U.S. shoppers bought apparel during Amazon Prime Day 2023 [7]

33% of Prime Day shoppers said they purchased apparel because discounts were deeper than usual [7]

35% of U.S. consumers say they have too many clothes already [8]

65% of consumers said inflation was the top reason to buy secondhand apparel [8]

52% of consumers said they looked for lower-priced dupes in 2023 [8]

40% of consumers said they cut back spending on apparel to afford essentials [9]

U.S. e-commerce apparel and accessories sales amounted to $201.3 billion in 2023 [10]

E-commerce accounted for 22.0% of total U.S. retail sales in Q4 2023 [10]

Online penetration of U.S. apparel, accessories, and footwear sales reached 38% in 2023 [11]

U.S. online sales of apparel, accessories, and footwear increased 4% in 2023 [11]

Mobile devices generated 75% of retail site traffic in Q4 2023 [12]

Mobile devices drove 64% of online orders during the 2023 holiday season [12]

Global online sales grew 3% year over year during the 2023 holiday season [12]

Buy online, pick up in store was used in 46% of digital orders by shoppers who chose store fulfillment in 2023 holiday shopping [13]

U.S. consumers spent $222.1 billion online from November 1 through December 31, 2023 [13]

Apparel was one of the categories with the highest online discounts at 23% in Cyber Week 2023 [13]

Amazon captured 37.6% of the U.S. apparel market online in 2023 [14]

U.S. online apparel sales on Amazon reached $47.5 billion in 2023 [14]

Shein’s share of the U.S. fast-fashion market rose to 40% in 2022 [15]

Shein’s valuation reached $66 billion in its 2023 funding round [16]

Temu’s U.S. monthly active users exceeded 51 million in January 2024 [17]

Shein’s U.S. monthly active users were 27 million in January 2024 [17]

71% of retail executives said improving customer experience was their top digital transformation objective [18]

54% of retail executives said their organizations were not prepared to manage technology disruption [18]

61% of U.S. consumers prefer to shop for apparel in-store rather than online [3]

41% of consumers said free shipping is the most important factor when shopping online for apparel [4]

88% of apparel shoppers consult ratings and reviews when shopping online [4]

45% of apparel shoppers have purchased clothing directly through social media [4]

38% of apparel shoppers have bought apparel after seeing influencer content [4]

Returns represented 14.5% of all U.S. retail sales in 2023 [19]

U.S. retailers estimated $743 billion in merchandise was returned in 2023 [19]

For every $100 in returned merchandise accepted, retailers lost $13.70 to return fraud in 2023 [19]

Global apparel market revenue was projected to reach US$1.79 trillion in 2024 [20]

The global apparel market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 2.81% from 2024 to 2028 [20]

Average revenue per user in the global apparel market was forecast at US$230.30 in 2024 [20]

User penetration in the global apparel market was projected at 29.5% in 2024 [20]

The U.S. apparel market revenue was forecast to amount to US$365.70 billion in 2024 [21]

The U.S. apparel market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 1.96% from 2024 to 2028 [21]

China’s apparel market revenue was forecast at US$314.50 billion in 2024 [22]

India’s apparel market revenue was forecast at US$101.40 billion in 2024 [23]

Zara owner Inditex reported sales of €35.95 billion in fiscal 2023 [24]

Inditex net income reached €5.38 billion in fiscal 2023 [24]

H&M Group net sales were SEK 236.0 billion in 2023 [25]

H&M Group profit after financial items totaled SEK 14.5 billion in 2023 [25]

Fast Retailing revenue was ¥2.77 trillion in fiscal 2023 [26]

Fast Retailing operating profit reached ¥381.0 billion in fiscal 2023 [26]

Gap Inc. net sales were $14.9 billion in fiscal 2023 [27]

Gap Inc. comparable sales increased 2% in fiscal 2023 [27]

PVH revenue totaled $9.22 billion in 2023 [28]

Ralph Lauren revenue was $6.63 billion in fiscal 2024 [29]

American Eagle Outfitters revenue was $5.26 billion in fiscal 2023 [30]

Urban Outfitters net sales were $5.15 billion in fiscal 2024 [31]

lululemon net revenue reached $9.6 billion in 2023 [32]

Levi Strauss & Co. net revenues were $6.18 billion in fiscal 2023 [33]

Kontoor Brands revenue totaled $2.61 billion in 2023 [34]

The TJX Companies net sales were $54.2 billion in fiscal 2024 [35]

Ross Stores sales reached $20.4 billion in fiscal 2023 [36]

Burlington Stores total sales were $9.72 billion in fiscal 2023 [37]

Nordstrom net sales were $14.2 billion in fiscal 2023 [38]

Macy’s net sales totaled $23.1 billion in fiscal 2023 [39]

Kohl’s net sales were $16.6 billion in fiscal 2023 [40]

The global secondhand apparel market was projected to reach $350 billion by 2028 [8]

79% of U.S. apparel import volume came from Asia in 2023 [41]

U.S. apparel imports totaled $79.3 billion in 2023 [41]

U.S. apparel exports totaled $4.9 billion in 2023 [41]

China accounted for 21.0% of U.S. apparel imports in 2023 [41]

Vietnam accounted for 18.9% of U.S. apparel imports in 2023 [41]

Bangladesh accounted for 9.3% of U.S. apparel imports in 2023 [41]

Indonesia accounted for 6.0% of U.S. apparel imports in 2023 [41]

India accounted for 5.8% of U.S. apparel imports in 2023 [41]

Cambodia accounted for 4.9% of U.S. apparel imports in 2023 [41]

Mexico accounted for 4.2% of U.S. apparel imports in 2023 [41]

The U.S. imported 7.57 billion square meter equivalents of apparel in 2023 [41]

Global merchandise exports of textiles and clothing were $916 billion in 2023 [42]

Clothing represented 2.0% of world merchandise exports in 2023 [42]

China accounted for 31.6% of world clothing exports in 2023 [42]

The EU accounted for 25.8% of world clothing exports in 2023 [42]

Bangladesh held 7.4% of world clothing exports in 2023 [42]

Vietnam held 6.4% of world clothing exports in 2023 [42]

The U.S. accounted for 16.0% of world clothing imports in 2023 [42]

The EU accounted for 28.8% of world clothing imports in 2023 [42]

Logistics costs represented 11.6% of U.S. GDP in 2023 [43]

U.S. business logistics costs totaled $2.3 trillion in 2023 [43]

Global cotton production was forecast at 113.5 million bales in 2024/25 [44]

Global cotton consumption was forecast at 117.8 million bales in 2024/25 [44]

U.S. cotton exports were forecast at 11.0 million bales in 2024/25 [44]

Average U.S. upland cotton farm price was forecast at 66 cents per pound in 2024/25 [44]

Retail inventory carrying costs rose 19.6% in 2023 [43]

62% of chief procurement officers cited supply chain disruptions as their top business risk in 2024 [45]

47% of procurement leaders increased nearshoring efforts in the past year [45]

64% of procurement leaders prioritized cost reduction in 2024 [45]

72% of apparel and textile companies said they expect digital traceability requirements to increase [46]

63% of fashion executives identified geopolitical instability as the top risk for 2024 [46]

82% of fashion executives expect consumers to trade down in 2024 [46]

69% of consumers say sustainability has become more important to them over the past two years [47]

44% of consumers are willing to pay more for sustainably produced fashion items [47]

The fashion industry is responsible for about 10% of global carbon emissions [48]

The fashion industry uses around 93 billion cubic meters of water per year [48]

A truckload of textiles is landfilled or burned every second [49]

Less than 1% of material used to produce clothing is recycled into new clothing [49]

Clothing utilization has decreased by 36% compared with 15 years ago [49]

The average consumer bought 60% more clothing in 2014 than in 2000 [49]

The equivalent of one garbage truck of textiles is landfilled or burned every second [50]

The fashion industry accounts for 20% of global wastewater [50]

The fashion industry produces 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions [51]

The fashion industry emitted about 2.1 billion metric tons of greenhouse gases in 2018 [51]

Fashion could miss its 2030 decarbonization target by 50% at the current pace [51]

Textile production generates more greenhouse gases than all international flights and maritime shipping combined [52]

EU citizens consume on average 26 kilograms of textiles per person each year [52]

EU citizens discard about 11 kilograms of textiles per person each year [52]

Less than half of used clothes are collected for reuse or recycling in the EU [52]

Only 1% of used clothes are recycled into new clothes in the EU [52]

Polyester accounted for 54% of global fiber production in 2023 [53]

Recycled polyester represented 13.6% of total polyester production in 2023 [53]

Global fiber production reached 124 million tonnes in 2023 [53]

Preferred fibers and materials had a 25% share of global fiber production in 2023 [53]

Cotton’s share of global fiber production was 20% in 2023 [53]

The average U.S. consumer throws away 81.5 pounds of clothes each year [54]

The fashion industry is the second-largest consumer of water worldwide [54]

Around 85% of all textiles go to the dump each year [54]

The apparel industry generated 17 million tons of textile waste in the U.S. in 2018 [55]

The U.S. textile recycling rate was 14.7% in 2018 [55]

Landfilled textiles in the U.S. totaled 11.3 million tons in 2018 [55]