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Consumers around the world are embracing travel with new enthusiasm in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite cost-of-living pressures and economic uncertainty, global travel flows (calculated as the total number of kilometers traveled by airfare-paying passengers) will return to 100 percent of pre-pandemic levels in 2023. It is predicted to reach 105% to 110%. According to McKinsey analysis, in 2024
Fundamental changes in lifestyle in recent years have fueled this increase. For example, remote and hybrid work is even more here to stay than it was before the pandemic. More and more workers are no longer tied to the office. Only 39% of companies in the U.S. now require employees to work full-time in the office, down from 49% in early 2023, according to workplace provider Scoop’s Flex Index. It is predicted that this will decline to 15% in the future. year. Meanwhile, business travelers are expanding their work travel into “workation” travel, a global phenomenon that combines business and leisure. According to Travel Edge, a specialist travel agency, business travelers in the United States, Europe and Asia take an average of six “workday” trips a year, with 29% of those trips to international destinations. .
For many consumers, travel and shopping go hand in hand. Major companies such as LVMH and Kering cited tourists, especially Americans living in Europe, as the main driver of sales growth in the first half of 2023, with increases of 47% and 53% respectively. Additionally, BoF-McKinsey’s State of Fashion 2024 Consumer Survey found that 80% of global respondents expect to purchase clothing, footwear, and accessories while traveling in the next year, and 28% expect to purchase clothing, footwear, and accessories while traveling. It turns out that people expect to spend more than they did the year before. For brands and retailers, these traveling consumers will present new growth opportunities.
push the boundaries
The world’s capitals will continue to be popular for world-class shopping. Paris, for example, will see a noticeable surge in tourists in 2023, with numbers approaching 2019 numbers. Nearly 12 million tourists visited Paris between January and April 2023, an increase of 27% year-on-year, but a decline of just 2.5% year-on-year. 2019 levels. London is also experiencing rapid growth, with more than 2 million foreign tourists expected to visit the city in 2023 compared to the previous year.
But many travelers are now looking to expand their itineraries beyond these traditional destinations. More than half of respondents to BoF and McKinsey’s consumer survey said they were looking for destinations they had never visited before in the coming year, perhaps as a nod to their desire for freedom and escapism post-pandemic. Ta. A small city like Edinburgh in Scotland. Lisbon, Portugal. Osaka, Japan has skyrocketed in popularity this year, offering a variety of experiences including historical tourism, culture, local dining and nightlife, and local shopping. “Set Jet” destinations inspired by TV and movies are also resonating with travelers. Consider what the Game of Thrones series has done for tourism in Dubrovnik, on Croatia’s Adriatic coast.
While travel itineraries are being reimagined, some brands are already adjusting how and where they connect with shoppers. In some cases, this means expanding the store network into tier 2 cities. Uniqlo is focusing on accelerating new store openings, including plans to open a store in Scotland on Princes Street in Edinburgh in 2024. Edinburgh also attracted attention when Chanel opened its first Scottish pop-up in the city in the past. summer. It can also mean tapping into trending locations in pop culture. This is what Louis Vuitton has done in Taormina, Sicily, opening the brand’s cafe and boutique in 2023 after the hilltop town served as the backdrop for the hit series “White Lotus.”
revival of experience
Providing a differentiated experience is also important. According to marketing agency Razorfish, 40% of travelers are willing to spend more than half of their travel budget on carefully selected moments and experiences. Pop-ups have been part of fashion’s playbook for some time, but brands are increasingly expanding these experiences into adjacent categories such as food, nature, and wellness. In 2023, resorts like Fendi will expand the luxury fashion brand’s aesthetic from a Prada pop-up cafe in London’s Harrods department store to designing a beach club at Puente Romano Beach Resort in Marbella, Spain. The scope is wide-ranging, from basic development to base development. Sailing boat for guests of luxury destination Costa del Sol. Loro Piana’s La Reserve à la Plage in Saint-Tropez, France, which consists of a beach club and a boutique, is another example.
And as customers’ travel itineraries expand geographically, so do their pop-up ventures. Consider Dior’s Dioriviera. Dior launched in 2018 to showcase the brand’s annual Beach Collection in a few selected destinations. By summer 2023, DiOliviera will have nearly 20 pop-up and concept shops, expanding beyond iconic spots like Beverly Hills, Saint-Tropez and Capri, and further east to places like Bali and Phuket. We also opened a store in Meanwhile, Coach launched its first Coach Airways-themed pop-up in Malacca, Malaysia, with a concept store and cafe inside a Boeing 747, selling ready-to-wear, bags and travel accessories.
Fashion is also working with hospitality to reimagine the traveler experience. For example, the Four Seasons Hotel in Houston, Texas, and fashion membership club Vivrel have partnered to give hotel guests free access to an on-site luxury “closet” stocked with brands such as Prada, Gucci, and Dior. Saks Fifth Avenue also developed the Fifth Avenue Club concept, offering personal styling, trunk shows and special events at various Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis hotels.
do the packing
The new travel era also influences category preferences. Resort fashion is a major beneficiary of travel growth, with BoF-McKinsey consumer research finding that nearly 40 per cent of consumers buy new clothing to wear on holiday, and Australia From Zimmermann to Brazil’s Farmio, bright, summery brands are fueling the appeal. There was also vacation category sales from luxury e-tailers such as MyTheresa, where 2022 vacation category sales were triple the 2019 level.
Luxury brands are introducing or revamping their resort wear collections with the aim of attracting new customers at more affordable prices. For example, LVMH-owned Loewe (one of List’s hottest brands of the year) continues to expand its Paula’s Ibiza Vacation line, riding on the success of its popular woven palm leaf tote bag. . But resort wear isn’t just limited to luxury homes. In the mass segment, for example, Mango launched a designer collaboration with California-based lifestyle brand Simon Miller in 2023 to create a colorful capsule beachwear collection.
Beyond the collection itself, success with resort wear requires a creative approach to marketing, including influencer trips and vibrant local activities. Recent launches of ready-to-wear lines that reflect the spirit of travel include Louis Vuitton’s LV by the Pool, which was launched at the iconic Zuma restaurant on the Greek island of Mykonos, and musician Dua’s・Includes Versace’s “La Vacanza” in collaboration with Lipa. south of France.
For fashion industry executives, the recovery in travel creates an opportunity to view the global growth map in a new light. As customers seek more unique and off-the-beaten-path experiences, fashion players are innovating their marketing efforts and proactively opening up new hotspots while piloting activations that resonate with the 2024 travel zeitgeist. You should consider specifying the Partnerships with adjacent industries such as travel adventure, hotels, spas, and restaurants allow brands and retailers to create engaging, blended experiences for customers wherever they are. Overall, the key is to keep pace with customers around the world and adapt to when, where and how they want to shop on the go.
This article first appeared in The State of Fashion 2024, an in-depth report on the global fashion industry co-published by BoF and McKinsey & Company.
