Data news and archive

Fashion's Top 100 richest hold over one trillion dollars

It takes one billion dollars to enter FashionUnited's 2026 ranking of the Top 100 richest people in fashion, the threshold set by Christian Louboutin at number 100. Together the members hold 1.07 trillion dollars, though that wealth sits overwhelmingly at the top: the five largest fortunes account for just over half the total. Leading the list...

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Business

Fashion industry linked to almost a third of global farmland, report finds

The fashion industry influences almost a third of the world’s agricultural land when leather and wool are included alongside textile crops, according to a new report from researchers at the University of Oxford’s Smith School of Enterprise and Environment and DIRT Charity. The report suggests that fashion has influence over 30 percent of global...

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Retail

US retail sales higher than expected as oil prices stay up

Retail sales in the United States surged past analyst expectations in August, government data showed Wednesday, as energy prices remained elevated amid war with Iran. US retail sales climbed 1.2 percent month-on-month to 773.9 billion dollars, reversing a 0.5-percent decline in July, according to an advance estimate by the Department of...

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Business

Supplier data leak: What fashion retailers need to know and do, according to experts

Three European retailers — Dutch department store De Bijenkorf, Amsterdam eyewear label Ace & Tate and German online fashion platform About You — disclosed customer data leaks in August. These companies faced the consequences of a cyber incident at logistics service provider Ceva Logistics, even though their own systems were not directly hacked....

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Business

Fashion's first half of 2026: records and a widening gap

Over 450 FashionUnited business articles spanning the half-year reporting season, published until Monday, describe an industry that is cautiously upbeat but sharply divided. In six out of 10 reports, companies described rising sales or improving profits, and that majority widened from July into August as second-quarter figures came in. More...

Fashion

Consumers want fashion retailers to offer more guidance, Asos research finds

Fashion consumers may have more access to trends and products than ever, but new research commissioned by Asos suggests retailers are facing a different challenge of how to help shoppers understand what to do with all that choice. A survey of 1,952 UK consumers found that 67 percent turn to social media for fashion inspiration, yet 68 percent...

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Business

Chanel, Vuitton, Dior: French brands dominate Brand Finance 2026 ranking

According to the latest data published by Brand Finance, the cumulative value of the world's top 50 apparel brands has decreased by 4 percent to 350.9 billion dollars in 2026. This contraction occurs amidst a climate of macroeconomic uncertainty and a realignment of consumer expectations. Despite these challenges, the industry is showing...

Fashion

Environmental responsibility improves financial performance by increasing sales

As consumers increasingly favour environmentally responsible companies, businesses face growing pressure to transform sustainability into a competitive advantage. A new study demonstrates that environmental responsibility indirectly improves financial performance by increasing sales. This identifies a key mechanism that has received little...

Fashion

StockX H1 report: Supreme and Jordan revive, Saucony dethrones Asics

The first half of the year was defined by revivals and football, according to StockX’s annual report, Big Facts: Brands Making Moves. The culture and resale marketplace has once again outlined the fastest-growing brands on its platform, tracking sales data from January to June 2026 and comparing it with the same period last year. The overarching...

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Business

Textile production generates 92,000 tonnes of microfibre pollution each year, report finds

New research from Earth Action has found that textile manufacturing generates around 92,000 tonnes of microfibre pollution annually, with more than 63 percent of this waste ultimately leaking into the environment. In the NGO’s ‘From Shedding to Solutions’, it is suggested that despite wastewater treatment capturing a significant proportion of...

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Fashion

Why ‘grandma hobbies’ are on the rise among young consumers

The next generation of fashion consumers seem to be showing a growing interest in the time behind a product. A sweater no longer solely exists as a garment. For some young consumers, it can also represent a skill learned, a material chosen and hours spent making something personal by hand. That shift is helping traditional crafts such as...

Fashion

Three out of four global consumers want 'Made in Italy' products

Three out of four consumers worldwide would agree to pay more for 'Made in Italy' products. Social media is the primary discovery channel for 'Made in Italy' in all five markets, ranging from 35 percent in France to 44 percent in the US. However, only 14 to 18 percent of Western consumers directly follow the official profiles of Italian brands....