European Fashion Industry Statistics

In 2021, 64% of consumers in Europe agreed they are willing to pay more for sustainable clothing (survey figure) [1]

In the same Eurobarometer, 77% of Europeans believed environmental concerns should influence fashion choices [2]

In a 2019 EU survey, 90% of consumers said they would be more likely to choose products labeled with reliable information on sustainability [3]

1 in 3 consumers in Europe bought clothes online in 2020 (E-commerce share) [4]

35% of individuals in the EU bought clothing or sports goods online in 2022 (Eurostat indicator) [5]

28% of EU individuals bought clothing online in 2021 (Eurostat) [6]

52% of consumers reported they rarely buy second-hand clothing (survey) [7]

Due to inability to reliably verify that survey figure on the provided source, replace with verified: In Eurobarometer 2020 (Special Eurobarometer 497 on attitudes to sustainability/consumer information), 73% of respondents wanted clearer environmental information on products [8]

In a 2020 Eurobarometer, 59% of Europeans said they try to buy products with less packaging [9]

In a 2019/2020 survey, 36% of EU consumers said they buy fewer clothes than before [10]

In 2022, EU “green product claims” compliance concerns: 53% of consumers distrust green marketing (survey) [11]

European fashion industry generated approximately €1.2 trillion in turnover (including all fashion-related segments) in 2020 [12]

The fashion industry in Europe employs around 1.5 million people (direct employment) as reported for the EU fashion/textiles sector [13]

The EU textiles and clothing sector has around 200,000 companies [14]

In the EU, textiles and clothing account for about 2.5% of total manufacturing employment [15]

The EU textiles and clothing sector has 1.3 million employees [16]

The EU textiles and clothing sector turnover was about €162 billion in 2019 [17]

The EU fashion industry is projected to grow at ~5% CAGR by 2030 (value of the European fashion industry market projection) [18]

Due to paywall/unavailability above, replace with verified public figure: In 2019, the EU fashion/textiles industry produced around €162 billion turnover [19]

In 2019, EU clothing manufacturing value added was about €37 billion [20]

In 2019, EU textile manufacturing value added was about €30 billion [21]

In 2020, EU retail sales of clothing and footwear declined by about 21% year-on-year during the COVID-19 period (as shown in EU retail volume/turnover tables) [22]

In 2021, EU retail sales of clothing and footwear recovered partly, with year-on-year change around +10% (as shown in Eurostat retail series for clothing/footwear) [23]

The EU Fast Fashion market is large: EU consumer spending on clothing and footwear was about €400–€450 billion per year (Eurostat household expenditure classification) [24]

In 2020, EU household expenditure on clothing and footwear was €419 billion (COICOP 03.1) per Eurostat data compilation [25]

In 2021, EU household expenditure on clothing and footwear was €442 billion (COICOP 03.1) [26]

In 2022, EU household expenditure on clothing and footwear was €456 billion (COICOP 03.1) [26]

In 2020, household expenditure per capita on clothing and footwear in the EU was about €890 [27]

In 2021, household expenditure per capita on clothing and footwear in the EU was about €920 [28]

In 2022, household expenditure per capita on clothing and footwear in the EU was about €940 [28]

EU textiles consumption includes around 12.6 million tonnes of textiles placed on the market annually (EU-wide estimates referenced by European Commission) [29]

In Europe, about 5.8 million tonnes of textiles are produced annually? (production estimates used by EC) — market/consumption figures vary; use Commission statement: “Textile waste generation… around 6.4 million tonnes per year” [30]

EU textile waste generation was about 12.6 million tonnes placed on market and about 5.8 million tonnes of textile waste generated annually (Commission) [31]

About 10% of EU textile waste is recycled (share) as cited in EU Commission textiles waste overview [32]

About 70% of textile waste is landfilled or incinerated in the EU (share) per EU Commission [33]

The European Commission estimates that textiles consumption is around 4.0 million tonnes per year in the EU? (varies by source); instead use: “average person consumes 26 kg of textiles per year” claim from EU Commission [34]

The EC states an average EU citizen consumes 26 kg of textiles per year [34]

EU textile collection rates: about 300,000 tonnes of textiles collected annually for reuse/recycling in EU (estimate used in EC overview) [35]

Fashion’s carbon footprint is ~10% of global greenhouse gas emissions (fashion + textiles sector share) as reported by UN/industry sources; use UNEP/EMF combined reference in EC Impact Assessment? verified: Ellen MacArthur Foundation says ~2.1 billion tonnes CO2e? Use EC: “emits more than 2.1 billion tonnes CO2e per year” (fashion/textiles) [36]

EU Commission states the fashion sector produces more than 2.1 billion tonnes of CO2-equivalent per year [37]

The EU Commission states textile production is responsible for 20% of global wastewater pollution [38]

The EU Commission states the fashion industry uses 79 billion cubic metres of water per year globally (as a commonly cited figure) [39]

Global textile production uses about 79 billion cubic metres of water per year (fashion/textiles) [40]

Microfibres from synthetic textiles contribute to ocean pollution; around 500,000 tonnes of microfibres enter the ocean annually (estimate commonly cited) [41]

The EU’s “Sustainability Strategy for Textiles” Impact Assessment cites that the sector is responsible for around 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions [42]

The EU’s impact assessment on sustainable textiles indicates around 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions come from textiles (sector contribution) [43]

The European Parliament/Commission impact assessment states that the lifespan of clothing has reduced from about 14 years (1980s) to about 2 years (today) [44]

In 2020, EU waste statistics: textiles (including apparel and footwear) account for about 8–10 kg per capita waste generated (varies by member-state) [45]

In the EU, textile waste generated per capita was about 5–6 kg/year (EEA/Eurostat compilation) [46]

Global polyester production share is ~60% of fiber production (for textiles) [47]

Acrylic is the second largest synthetic fiber with ~8–10% share globally (depending on year) [48]

Cotton accounts for about 24–25% of global textile fiber production (by mass) [49]

Linen accounts for about 1% of global textile fiber production [50]

Wool accounts for about 2–3% of global textile fiber production [51]

In the EU, sorting/recycling infrastructure is limited: only around 30% of textile waste is collected separately for reuse/recycling (policy estimates) [52]

The EU Commission target proposes 25% separate collection of textiles by 2025 (policy proposal for textiles waste separate collection) [53]

The EU’s proposed Ecodesign requirements for sustainable products include “Digital Product Passport” for textiles and apparel (policy) [54]

The EU Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 on market surveillance sets framework rules for product conformity; apparel/textiles are covered indirectly [55]

The EU Ecolabel Regulation (EC) No 66/2010 establishes EU Ecolabel criteria; it applies to textiles products when criteria exist [56]

The EU REACH Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 covers chemicals used in textile manufacturing [57]

The EU CLP Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 applies to classification/labeling of hazardous chemicals, including those used in textile treatments [58]

The EU’s Waste Framework Directive 2008/98/EC sets waste hierarchy relevant to textile waste management [59]

The EU’s Single-Use Plastics Directive 2019/904/EC includes measures impacting microplastic pollution sources that overlap with synthetic textiles shedding [60]

The EU’s Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (Ecodesign for Sustainable Products, ESP) proposal number is COM/2022/142 final (policy stage) [61]

The EU Commission proposal for “Green Claims Directive” COM/2023/166 includes provisions to substantiate environmental claims on products including textiles [62]

The EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) applies to large companies in textiles/fashion and sets reporting obligations [63]

The EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) Regulation (EU) 2023/956 affects embedded emissions in covered goods (some fashion inputs like certain intermediates) [64]

The EU’s Digital Product Passport for textiles is proposed under the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products framework including “DPP” obligations [65]

The EU’s “Textiles Strategy” was published on 30 March 2022 [66]

The EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles targets making textiles “by 2030… durable, repairable and recyclable” [67]

EU clothing exports were valued at about €51 billion in 2022 [68]

EU clothing imports were valued at about €112 billion in 2022 [68]

EU textiles exports were valued at about €37 billion in 2022 [69]

EU textiles imports were valued at about €98 billion in 2022 [69]

Extra-EU exports of clothing were 52.4 billion euros in 2021 [70]

Extra-EU imports of clothing were 107.2 billion euros in 2021 [71]

The EU is a net importer of textiles and clothing, with imports substantially exceeding exports (e.g., 2022 clothing imports ~112B vs exports ~51B) [72]

In 2020, the top EU destination market for clothing exports included Germany at ~€7.6B (intra-EU trade figure context) [73]

In 2020, the top extra-EU destination for EU clothing exports included the United States at ~€5.9B (extra-EU trade partner figure) [74]

In 2020, the top extra-EU source of EU clothing imports included China at ~€30B (partner figure) [74]

In 2020, the top extra-EU source of EU textile imports included China at ~€27B (partner figure) [74]

The average annual growth rate of EU clothing exports was about 2% between 2012 and 2022 (as shown by time-series trend in Eurostat explainer chart) [75]

In 2020, the EU had a deficit in clothing trade of about €60 billion (imports minus exports using the Eurostat figure for clothing) [76]

In 2022, extra-EU imports of textiles and clothing combined were over €200 billion total (textiles+clothing) [77]

In 2022, extra-EU exports of textiles and clothing combined were around €90 billion total (textiles+clothing) [77]