Collabs are key to success of fast-growing brands, StockX data suggests

Collaborations are everywhere in the fashion industry. Just in the past few weeks alone, collabs have been announced between Wood Wood and Adidas, Other Stories x A.W.A.K.E., Puma and Tracksmith, Gant and Wrangler, Anthropologie and Alice Temperley, and Pokémon and Clarks.

In fact collabs like these are key to the success of the world’s fastest-growing brands right now, according to new research by online resale platform StockX, which has found itself at the forefront of the burgeoning streetwear market in recent years.

StockX’s mid-year Current Culture Index, published this week, analyses the platform’s fastest growing brands in the first six months of 2022 compared to the same period in 2021.

The index was dominated by collaborations.

Fastest-growing brands

Streetwear label Yeezy was crowned the fastest-growing brand in the first half of the year thanks in part to its collaboration with Gap, the news of which was first announced back in June 2020 when it sent Gap’s share price up 40 percent. Yeezy saw 1,063 percent year-over-year trade growth on StockX’s platform in the first half of 2022.

Another fast-growing brand was Uniqlo, which saw 582 percent growth. StockX noted that Uniqlo frequently teams up with other brands, but its collabs with Marni and Undercover were “key” to its fast-growth on the platform.

Hottest sneakers and accessories

When it comes to sneakers, a cornerstone of the red-hot resale market, Hoka was the fastest-growing brand, with 3,606 percent growth from the previous year. StockX said its collaborations with the likes of Bodega and Moncler “helped spur added demand on the secondary market”.

In second place was Puma thanks to its collaboration with NBA star LaMelo Ball, which helped the brand grow 415 percent year-on-year.

Birkenstock, which last year topped StockX’s sneaker table, remained in the top five in the first half of 2022 with growth of 219 percent thanks to its collaborations with Stüssy and Manolo Blahnik.

Topping the list of accessories was Swatch, with growth of 4,771 percent in the first half, thanks to the Swatch x Omega MoonSwatch collaboration, which was the best-selling watch collection in StockX’s history.