High Street shops where it’s always sale time

GONE are the days of waiting until January to stock up on cut-price fashion — as much of the High Street is now running a permanent sale.

Some chains are selling only one in three items at full price, research found, while several had promotions on summer collections as early as Easter.

Competition between High Street stores and the rise of cheap online fashion have driven down prices for shoppers, experts said. As a result, annual spending on clothes has dropped for the first time in six years.

Retail analyst Kantar Worldpanel said sales of clothing, shoes and accessories in the 52 weeks to June were down by 0.1 per cent compared to the year before.

And the vast majority of items at some chains — including French Connection and Karen Millen — were sold for below the original label price. Glen Tooke, Kantar Worldpanel’s consumer insight director, said: ‘Stores are becoming increasingly reliant on discounting and power has shifted into the hands of consumers. They have come to expect discounts throughout the year.

‘Retailers are suffering from these shifting expectations — before its administration, discounting accounted for almost 60 per cent of BHS sales. At the same time, French Connection and Karen Millen both sell only 37 per cent of stock at full price.

‘The problem is exacerbated by retailers over-buying and then needing to clear stock simply to make room for the next season.’

Mr Tooke said some brands appear to have lost touch with shoppers, pushing the latest catwalk trends rather than everyday outfits.

He said clothes that are good quality and a flattering fit are more appealing than a copy of something seen on a model in Paris.

He added: ‘ Loyalty is a thing of the past ... stores and brands can no longer rely on doing the same things for the same shoppers again and again. Two-fifths of consumers say that clothing being “on trend” is not important to them, yet brands and manufacturers are continuing to sacrifice quality, fit and price for trend-led products, and we’ve witnessed a number of high-profile retailers come under criticism for doing so.’

The backlash against high fashion means supermarkets now hold a 10.1 per cent share of the clothing market. Meanwhile almost a quarter of fashion spending — 23 per cent — happens online, compared with just 2 per cent in 2006. The total value of the market has grown by 20 per cent to £36billion over the past decade, but the average annual spend per person has only increased by £10 over the same period, to £767.

Kantar Worldpanel said social media were influencing some groups to spend more on clothes. Research found that the 16 per cent of women who frequently used photo-sharing app Instagram spent around £200 more each year than those who did not.

New Marks & Spencer boss Steve Rowe recently promised a move away from fashion fads towards everyday style. ‘We need to listen to more of what the customer says,’ he said. ‘We have spent a lot of time telling them what they want and not hearing what they really need. We need to change the emphasis a little bit away from fashion, more towards stylish contemporary clothing.’