In 2015, online apparel sales took the number one spot in total online sales from the computer hardware sector (personal computers and tablets), which had been the undisputed online sales leader for a decade.
With the growth of online shopping and increasing online apparel sales starting to explode, it’s no wonder America’s bricks-and-mortar apparel retailers are closing stores across the country.
If these trends continue, and researchers expect them to, Wall Street analysts say we could see 50 retail bankruptcies in the next 12 to 24 months.
Here’s how retail was shaken to its core, and how I plan to work its fall from grace to my readers’ advantage…
The End of an Era
According to the Centre for Retail Research, online sales in 2015 in the U.S. reached $347.25 billion.
ComScore, an online metrics firm that captures online sales data of everything and tracks online habits, reported that in 2015 online sales of apparel and accessories reached $51.5 billion while online sales of personal computers, tablets and other computer hardware equipment totaled $51.1 billion. After ten straight years of commanding the largest sector of online sales, apparel took that throne from computers, and it looks like it will stay that way for good.
As online sales in general increase, percentage of total online sales for apparel and accessories, items traditionally purchased in stand-alone stores and shopping centers across America, are expected to grow at about 19% annually. That’s an increasing slice of a rapidly growing pie.
Online sales in the U.S. totaled $399.53 billion in 2016, up 14.4% from 2015. Sales in 2017 are expected to rise 14.9% to $459.07 billion in 2017, according to the Centre for Retail Research. Looking ahead, they’re slated to grow another 15.4% to in 2018 to at least $529 billion.
ComScore’s research indicates that apparel shoppers started feeling it was “less risky to shop for clothes online.”
