the women's ready-to-wear market | Italy

1.1 Definition and scope of study

Ready-to-wear refers to all clothing items produced in series thanks to a standardization of sizes. It is therefore opposed to made-to-measure. Non-textile shoes and accessories, as well as products for children, are excluded from this study. 

The global women's ready-to-wear market is expanding, notably due to the dynamism of the Asia-Pacific and US markets, which are driving growth. The market is also characterized by a fragmented structure, with no single company representing more than 3% of the sector's market share. For example, the top 5 companies in the ready-to-wear market, namely Nike, Adidas, Inditex, H&M and Fast Retailing, accounted for only 8% of the market in 2018.

Representing a quarter of the Italian textile market, sales in the women's fashion sector grew by 4.5% between 2018 and 2019. However, the Italian women's ready-to-wear market, and fashion in general, is highly atomized. There are companies of all sizes, with vastly different sales figures, from ultra-specialized artisans to large "verticalized" groups. Indeed, Max Mara, the market leader, has a 5% market share in 2020, followed by Zara Italy with 3.8% and Calzedonia with 3.7%. 

However, the women's ready-to-wear market is evolving according to trends that constitute important growth drivers. Social and environmental commitment is the main challenge for the sector. In addition, the digitalization of the market and the significant influence of marketing and communication campaigns. Finally, exports are on the up and the international market appears to be a promising outlet.