Muslims spent $244b on apparel in 2015: Salaam

Islamic economy growing at twice the rate of global economy

dubai — Muslims worldwide spent an estimated $244 billion in 2015 on apparel, accounting for 13.56 per cent of the global Muslim consumer spending of $1.8 trillion.

With the Islamic economy growing at nearly twice the rate of the global economy, spending by the Muslim population on clothes is expected to grow to $322 billion by 2018, as various studies indicate.

A new report published by Salaam Gateway, the Global Islamic Economy Gateway, identified over 1,000 manufacturers of apparel based in Muslim countries, 146 key modest fashion brands, and 85 e-commerce retailers.

Modest fashion represents a key sub-segment of Muslim spending on clothing, underpinned by Islamic religious obligations, with requirements for both men and women. The report shows that female spending represents a larger market opportunity, accounting for two thirds of global apparel spending.

According to Mohammed Abdullah Al Gergawi, chairman of the Board of Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre, or DIEDC, annual Muslim consumer spending exceeded $1.8 trillion. Islamic banking assets hover at some $1.3 trillion and are expected to double in just five years from today. Total spending by Muslims on Halal food and beverage annually exceeds $1.1 trillion, which is equivalent to the combined spending of India and China.

The latest State of Global Islamic Economy Report said that Muslims spent $142 billion on tourism, with the GIEI ranking the UAE as having the second best positioned Islamic economy (following Malaysia) for serving the family-friendly tourism sector among the 73 countries covered by the indicator. A research note by Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry based on a study by Thomson Reuters revealed that the global Islamic clothes, fashion and design market is larger than most top global clothing markets such as China, with customer spending worth $221 billion, Japan with $111 billion, Russia with $106 billion and Germany with $101 billion in 2012. The only exception is the US, which is the biggest market in terms of expenditure on clothing and footwear recording $494 billion in spending in 2012

Salaam Gateway report said that while mainstream fashion is fairly saturated, modest fashion is turning into the mainstream. The modest fashion-specific brands and companies’ landscape is highly fragmented with no global modest fashion players currently.