the children's clothing market | Italy

1.1 Definition and scope of study

The children's clothing market refers to all fashion clothes and accessories for children from 3 to 12 years old. The children's clothing market is growing rapidly and is considered more dynamic than adult clothing.

The United States dominate the global market, accounting for 27% of the total, while China is the fastest growing country. In Europe, Germany has the largest market share. There are several new trends in the market, mainly as a result of a new generation of millennial parents, who are now responsible for about 50% of children.

In Italy, the market is structured around large specialized brands, large generalist retailers and several independent specialized operators. In the market, we find many international brands, but also big Italian brands with commercial operations all over the world, such as Benetton or Chicco.

There are several factors that influence the market. These include the reduction in the birth rate, the high level of loyalty of new parents and the growing demand for sustainable products. In addition, parents are paying more and more attention to the quality of their children's fabrics and clothing design, thus pushing market players to adapt to this type of demand. Parents say they are more influenced by quality (44%), durability (39%) and the trend (29%) in purchasing clothing for their children.

The market is experiencing a period of digitization and growth in the sustainability of materials and production processes. Market operators, in fact, offer more and more items produced with recycled materials and do so using digital channels, whose use by consumers is growing rapidly, gaining several percentage points each year.