How Archie and Fleabag drove 2019’s shopping trends
Well-being, summer heat and some unlikely influencers shaped UK’S habits
FLEABAG, the hit comedy series, sparked a boom in the sales of black jumpsuits and red lipstick, a review into this year’s shopping trends has revealed.
John Lewis saw a 66 per cent increase in the sale of the products as shoppers sought to emulate the look of the cult television hit’s protagonist, played by Phoebe Waller-bridge.
But as some consumers made purchases based on their television preferences, others were influenced by such things as their pursuit of wellness, the Royal family and the weather.
Weighted blankets, which are said to reduce stress, increase relaxation and improve sleep quality, shot off the shelves at John Lewis. In the week before Christmas, sales peaked at 177 per cent compared with the previous week.
According to Unna Patel, partner and filled bedding buyer at John Lewis, the “rise of social media” and “well-being podcasts” had encouraged people to invest in products that improve daily well-being.
“Investing in products which improve daily wellbeing and quality of sleep is a growing priority for many of our customers so we have developed this product to offer a new tool for relaxation,” she said.
Decluttering, dubbed as another prong of the wellness trend, led to the annual New Year spike in sales of storage products last January. Many shoppers, inspired by Marie Kondo, a professional “tidier”, see a neat home as equal to a tidy mind, said Gabrielle Anderson, partner and utility shop assistant buyer at John Lewis. And 2020 looks to be no different.
“Sales of storage products have spiked in the past week as customers have started ‘spring’ cleaning,” she said. “Modular storage, which enables customers to mix and match according to their storage demand, saw strong growth last week with sales up 26 per cent compared with the week before.
“Within this department, sales of the storage brand Like-it were up 63 per cent on the week as customers use decluttering as a form of mindfulness.”
The influence of the Royal family on consumers stayed strong throughout 2019. In May, as Prince Harry presented Archie Harrison Mountbatten-windsor to the world, shoppers leapt at the
‘Storage products have spiked as customers start “spring” cleaning’
chance to own the £105 shawl he was wrapped in on his public debut.
Family business GH Hurt & Son said Archie’s appearance in the shawl triggered a buying frenzy, with 25,000 people visiting the site in the following 24 hours and a 190 per cent surge in sales.
However, an even bigger baby boom hit retail in September with a baby item being sold on ebay every 20 seconds, including 35 buggies every hour for an average of £161.
Meanwhile, as the UK experienced temperatures just above 38C on July 25, John Lewis reported selling six fans a minute.
On the hottest day on record, Waitrose shoppers provided the supermarket with two of its biggest weeks ever for sales of rosé wine, while also sending sales of English sparkling wine up 71 per cent.