albert Chan
US Apparel and Beauty Spending Tracker: September 2021
The Coresight Research US Apparel and Beauty Spending Tracker provides a monthly update on the trajectory of consumer spending on beauty, clothing and footwear. The data presented in this report refer to consumer spending through any channels and so differ from retail sales data, which include product category sales by type of retailer. The data are sourced from the US Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).
Clothing and Footwear Spending Update
Consumer spending on clothing and footwear (“apparel”) continued to grow in September 2021. Year-over-year growth moderated to 16.6%—lower than August’s 25.7% and July’s 23.4% but still reflecting a relatively strong recovery in consumer spending, which is being driven by consumers renewing their wardrobes as restrictions ease and they resume social activities.
We are closely monitoring the impact of the Covid-19 Delta variant, as fluctuations in case numbers may impact recovery. As of September 2021, the recent spread of Covid-19 in the US has not yet negatively impacted apparel consumer spending.
Apparel spending has recovered strongly, exceeding pre-pandemic levels from 2019 in every month so far in 2021. On a two-year basis, apparel spending growth was 22.0% in September 2021, the highest level so far this year. Two-year apparel spending growth averaged 16.9% between January and September 2021. Should that growth rate continue, we will see a 14.0% year-over-year increase in apparel spending in October and an 18.3% year-over-year increase in November 2021.
Figure 1. US Consumer Spending on Clothing and Footwear (YoY % Change)
[caption id="attachment_135198" align="aligncenter" width="700"]
Note: Expenditure data are seasonally adjusted at annual ratesSource: BEA/Coresight Research[/caption]
Clothing and Footwear Spending by Subcategory
We track four subcategories of clothing and footwear: footwear, children’s and infants’ clothing, men’s and boys’ clothing, and women’s and girls’ clothing.
Spending on clothing overall saw a year-over-year increase of 17.8% in September 2021. Figure 2 shows spending on clothing by category type. Category sales growth followed the same growth pattern as clothing overall, with a slight fall in February 2021 and a peak in April, followed by strong growth between May and September.
Figure 2. US Consumer Spending on Clothing in 2021, by Category (YoY % Change)
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Source: BEA/Coresight ResearchSpending on footwear increased by 13.1% year over year in September 2021, lower than the 29.0% increase in August 2021.
Figure 3. US Consumer Spending on Footwear in 2021 (YoY % Change)
[wpdatatable id=1393] Source: BEA/Coresight ResearchBeauty Spending Update
Our tracker follows the US BEA definition of the beauty category, including bath products, cosmetics, nail products and tools, and perfumes.
Growth in consumer spending on beauty came in at 15.7% year over year in September 2021, higher than the 13.9% growth in August. Spending on beauty recovered quickly last year and has seen positive year-over-year growth since July 2020.
On a two-year basis, category spending growth stood at 19.7% in September and averaged 16.1% between January and September 2021. Should that growth rate continue, we will see a moderated 10.0% year-over-year increase in beauty spending in October and an 11.8% year-over-year increase in November.
Figure 4. US Consumer Spending on Selected Beauty Categories (YoY % Change) [caption id="attachment_135199" align="aligncenter" width="700"]
The beauty category is defined as bath products, cosmetics, nail products and tools, and perfumesSource: BEA/Coresight Research[/caption]