SA fashion: why it’s a menswear world
Local retailers struggle to cash in on growing male fashion market
● Before there were metrosexuals there was the dandy — a well-dressed, well-groomed man whose style and charm transcended the ages. And as dandyism continues to show itself in different forms, some retailers are catching on as these stylish men are proving to be good for business.
Sara Maggioni, director of retail and buying at UK-based trend forecast group WGSN, said this week that though menswear remains a significantly smaller category than the womenswear market, “sales of menswear are starting to outperform sales of womenswear and it’s a market that is forecast to grow in the next few years”.
Maggioni said that in SA specifically, when it comes to trend-led styles as opposed to more classic styles, we have certainly seen growth in the past few years in terms of sales and also in terms of the variety of trends and styles.
“As men take more interest in their personal look we are also seeing growth within menswear across specific niche markets such as active wear, lifestyle and travel, for example,” Maggioni said.
For the past few seasons South African retailers have been missing the mark with poor merchandising decisions and failing to make the correct clothing choices with their womenswear brands, resulting in lower sales in an already constrained retail environment.
In the 52 weeks to end-June, Woolworths’ fashion, beauty and home division performed poorly, with sales 1.5% lower than in the previous year.
In its annual report, Woolworths CEO Ian Moir said that the reason for poor womenswear sales was that its relaunched modern womenswear range, under the subbrand Edition, had failed to resonate with its core customers.
This reflected similar issues in its Australian operations, namely the Country Road Group, the biggest brand in its portfolio Down Under, particularly in womenswear, which has not delivered.
“It will take time to return to where it should be but we have made numerous changes and strategic shifts to address the poor product execution we experienced in the current year,” said Moir.
But an overindulgence in womenswear by local retailers has been their shortcoming as they struggle to capture a share of a growing market.
Maggioni said there was definitely an opportunity for mainstream retailers to appeal to younger consumers because they take more interest in their look, are more willing to invest in their personal style and go to great lengths to put a look together.
“Millennials and Gen Z are going to be the largest-spending group sooner than we think, so there is plenty of scope for retailers to tap into this demographic,” Maggioni said.
According to a 2017 report by Germanbased research firm GfK, South African millennials, aged 20-34 in 2016, represent 14million consumers, which is equivalent to 27% of the South African population, and are responsible for some large shifts in mindset that have had a major impact on brands’ requirements to win over consumers.
This category of individuals strives for social recognition and status, a tendency especially high among males. Yet retailers, despite knowing this, are not adapting.
Francesca Muston, head of retail and product analysis at WGSN, said that though expanding into a growth area can certainly help to protect a business, it needs to be handled with care as there is a danger of brands being too broad.
“Struggling and failing department stores are a good example of how this strategy doesn’t equal success. The consumer has unprecedented access to specific and niche products, and brands that are too broad can often equate to a generic offer which isn’t appealing,” Muston said.
“If you’re targeting a new customer, you need to be very focused on who they are, what their priorities are and how they want to shop.”
The South African retail sector has been the graveyard of many failed brands, such as Stuttafords, Mango, River Island and more recently Topshop, all of which had a strong focus on womenswear. Given that womenswear is such a large category, it is perhaps not surprising that retailers have focused on female consumers.
Muston said: “There are also the economics of scale as the womenswear market still massively overshadows menswear in terms of volumes. In most global regions it is still two to three times the size of menswear.”
But with fickle customers and dynamic retail trends, the competition for women customers is intense.
Muston said men are less trend-driven and more interested in functionality and are more likely to look for quality tailoring and high-spec sportswear, all of which push up average prices.
TFG (The Foschini Group) CEO Anthony Thunström said recently that in SA the group had seen ample opportunities to roll out menswear brand Relay Jeans.
Relay Jeans, which was originally a concession store within Markham’s brand, has matured into stand-alone stores, with more than 22 stores.
“Just over a year ago we took a small store opposite Markham’s and we put Relay product in there and it became Relay monogrammed, and at the rate that it is going, we could get up to 70 to 80 stores,” Thunström said.
TFG’s Australian brand, Johnny Bigg, a brand for tall and plus-sized men, was also making its mark in the industry.
“It was sub-scale at the time we did the acquisition but they continued to build stores and they are rolling out at critical mass … we are actually now getting inquiries from as far afield as the US to take the brand there,” Thunström said.
Unlike its peers, TFG has eight male-centred brands in its 28-brand portfolio, including Fabiani, G-Star Raw, Connor, Markham’s, Tarocash and Australian brand yd.
But in times of economic difficulties and price constraints, customers have become more price-sensitive — and menswear does not come cheap.
Muston said the price disparities come down to the fact that there is just less variety in menswear in terms of trends.
“The [clothing] updates are much more nuanced for menswear,” she said.
“There aren’t necessarily completely new aesthetics every single season, so there is less risk of an item feeling old and dated come next season. So because they buy less, they are prepared to spend a bit more.”
[Men] buy less [so] they’re prepared to spend a bit more Francesca Muston
Head of retail and product analysis at WGSN