statistics
Global Fashion Industry Statistics
General data
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Population: | 67.81 million | INSEE, September 2022 |
| Labor force: | 27.73 billion (in 2021) | Informations sur le marché du travail : site Internet de la Commission européenne de la France, Septembre 2022 |
| Unemployment rate: | 7.4% | INSEE, September 2022 |
| Real GDP per capita: | 32 530 euros | Eurostat, September 2022 |
France: Economy, household income and purchasing power
Economy
France is the seventh largest economy in the world and the second largest in the European Union, after Germany (see the EU tab for more information).
Its GDP of €2.3 trillion represents 17% of the total GDP of the EU-27
Source: Publication of the Commissioner for Trade in France: Market Panorama, based on Eurostat information, in May 2020
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in France per capita in 2020: 34,000 euros (just above the EU average of 29,700 euros).
Source: CBS publication in July 2021 based on Eurostat information
Household income and purchasing power
Household disposable income per capita in France, adjusted for price levels, was €26,200 per capita in 2019. France ranks sixth in the EU.
Source:publication of the CBS in a July 2021 paper based on Eurostat information (adjusted gross disposable household income per capita in PPS)
France had an average purchasing power of €20,306 per capita for spending and saving in 2019, 38% higher than the EU average of €14,739.
Source: GfK Purchasing Power Europe 2019, October 2019.
Clothing consumption and household expenditure
Clothing consumption expenditure in France: how much do the French spend on clothing?
Household spending on clothing and footwear in 2020 was 3.1% (as % of total expenditure).
Source:> Household expenditure by category, France, 2020, Clothing and Footwear (as % of total expenditure), Eurostat
In 2020, the French spent an average of 430 euros on clothing. Consumer spending on fashion is lower than the EU-27 average of €490.
From the Key Facts and Figures 2022 of the Euratex European Textile and Clothing Industry report, June 2022. Source: Eurostat
In 2018 the French spent an average of 530 euros per year on clothes.
From the Key Facts and Figures 2022 of the Euratex European Textile and Clothing Industry report, June 2022. Source: Eurostat
In 2018, the French spent €35.7 billion on clothing and footwear, making them the fourth biggest spenders in Europe, after the UK, Germany and Italy. (The UK spent €65.4 billion, Germany €62.7 billion and Italy €52.4 billion).
Source: Household consumption expenditure on clothing in the European Union in 2018, by country, Statista 2022
The French purchased 1.5 billion units of clothing in 2017. In that year, France was the ninth largest retail market in the world.
Source: Common Objective CO Data in the article 'Volume and Consumption: How much does the world buy?', May 2018. Based on data: Number of apparel units purchased per country, 2017 (Source: Market Research Provider, Euromonitor International)
Overview of fashion in France
Direct turnover: €154 billion
Export turnover: €35.7 billion
Added value: €37.5 billion (1.7% of GDP)
Number of jobs in the sector: 616,552
From 'Fashion in France : Evaluation of its economic weight', Institut Francais de la Mode, November 2018. Sources: INSEE, ESANE 2016.
Turnover
The direct turnover of the fashion industry is 154 billion euros.
Textiles / Clothing: €66.3 billion (excluding tax)
Perfumes: €46.4 billion (excluding tax)
Shoes and leather: €21.2 billion (excluding tax)
Eyewear: €8.7 billion (excluding tax)
Watches / Jewellery: €7.3 billion (excluding tax)
Related services: €4.2 billion (excluding tax)
From "La Mode en France : Evaluation de son poids économique", carried out by the Institut Français de la Mode and Quadrat Etudes with the support of DEFI, November 2018. Sources: INSEE, ESANE 2016.
Share in direct sales
Retail sales: 49%
Manufacturing: 26 %
Wholesale: 22%
Associated services: 3%
Fashion in France is a major contributor to GDP and employment
Fashion contributes directly €37.5 billion and indirectly €31.4 billion to a total of €68.9 billion of added value, or 3.1% of French GDP.
In terms of jobs, fashion contributes directly 616,000 and indirectly 384,000 for a total of 1 million jobs in France.
Direct value added: €37.5 billion, 617,000 jobs
Induced effects: €10.2 billion, 115,000 jobs
Indirect effects: €21.2 billion, 277,000 jobs
From "La Mode en France : Evaluation de son poids économique", carried out by the Institut Français de la Mode and Quadrat Etudes with the support of DEFI, November 2018.
French industries
With 2,500 companies, the French clothing industry employs 32,000 people in France and more than 300,000 abroad.
Turnover of the French clothing industry is €15 billion, of which €8.7 billion, or 58%, is generated internationally.
Source: Union Française des Industries Mode & Habillement
French manufacturing
French manufacturing today
450 companies
11,000 jobs
Luxury represents 400 companies and 9500 jobs
Source: Union Française des Industries Mode & Habillement
Import and Export
France is the third largest importer of clothing in the EU and the fourth largest exporter of clothing in the EU.
In 2020, France imported almost 10 billion items of clothing. This makes France the third largest importer of clothing in Europe after Germany, which is the largest importer of clothing with 17 billion, followed by Spain with 10 billion.
France is the fourth largest exporter of clothing in the EU, after Italy, Germany and Spain. France exported almost 4 billion items of clothing in 2020.
Source: Eurostat news 'Where do our clothes come from', April 2021.
Trade FR EU
In 2020, EU imports of clothing increased by 12% compared to 2019 (+66% for textiles).
Exports decreased by 12% for clothing and 14% for textiles, compared to 2019.
Source: Institut Francais de la Mode, ‘EU External Trade : January - December 2020 from February 2021
Import UE-28 2020
| Clothing | IEU 28 IMPORTS IN THE PERIOD JANUARY - DECEMBER 2020 In millions of euros | % Variation 2020/ 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| Total | 77 351 526 | -12% |
Clothing is mainly imported from Asia (59 219 995 million euros in 2020). Main importing countries: China (1), Bangladesh, Turkey, India, Vietnam, Cambodia, Pakistan, Myanmar, Morocco and Tunisia.
Issu de l’Institut Francais de la Mode, February 2021. Importations UE 28 Sur la période Janvier - Décembre 2020 en milliers d’euros. Source: TDM, Calculs IFM.
Export EU-28 2020
| Clothing | IEU 28 EXPORTS IN THE PERIOD JANUARY - DECEMBER 2020 In millions of euros | % Variation 2020/ 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| Total | 25 513 304 | -12% |
Main exporting countries: Switzerland, the United States, Russia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Norway, Australia and Turkey.
Issu de l’Institut Francais de la Mode, February 2021. Exportations UE 28 Sur la periode Janvier - Décembre 2020 en milliers d’euros. Source: TDM, Calculs IFM.
Trade partners in textiles and clothing
In 2019, France's main textile and clothing trading partners were Italy, Spain, Germany, Belgium and the UK for exports. For imports, its main partners were China, Bangladesh, Italy, Turkey and India for imports.
Source: WITS World bank France Textiles and Clothing Exports, Imports, Tariffs by country and region 2019’
The largest French fashion companies
LVMH Group is the world's leading apparel company by market capitalisation (2022)
LVMH is by far the fashion company with the highest market capitalization, valued at around $317 billion in September 2022. This is over $150 billion more than Nike, which is in second place with a market capitalisation of $163.1 billion. Dior comes in third place. The market capitalization value of LVMH was roughly equal to that of the seven companies ranked fourth to tenth, according to market and consumer data firm Statista.
Source: Leading clothing companies worldwide as of September 2022, by market capitalization, in billion US dollars September 2022
According to Forbes, Louis Vuitton is the 9th most valuable fashion brand in the world, with a brand value of $47.2 billion.
The most prestigious French brands in the world: Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Hermès and Cartier
According to Statista, France has the sixth highest national brand value in the world in 2021.
Louis Vuitton is the most valuable French brand in the world, worth €20.2 billion. Also in the top 10 most valuable French brands in the world (2022) are Chanel, Hermès and Cartier. Chanel is the fourth most valuable French brand in the world with a brand value of 13.16 billion euros, Hermès is sixth with a brand value of 11.64 billion euros and Cartier is eighth with a value of 10.71 billion euros.
Source: Most valuable French brands in the world in 2022, by brand value (in billion euros) Statista, August 2022
In Q1 2022 Louis Vuitton was the third most fashionable brand, according to the Lyst Index (Q1 2022).
E-commerce
E-commerce in France in 2021: the French spent 129 billion euros online
In 2021, the Covid-19 pandemic pushed the French to buy more online (one online purchase per buyer per week on average in 2021). Average purchase value: €60.
Source: Rapport Chiffres clés du e-commerce 2022, Fevad.
The e-commerce sector (products and services) exceeded 129 billion euros in 2021, an increase of 15.1% compared to 8.5% in 2020. The fashion-clothing category continued to grow in 2021 with +6%.
Source: Press release Fevad (Federation of e-commerce and distance selling), February 2022
Last update: October 2022