The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
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Created by BoF’s journalists and editors, in conjunction with our wider network of leading fashion creatives, thought-leaders, and innovators, Masterclasses are in-depth webinars with supporting resources, designed to deliver key learning outcomes on critical industry topics.
Designer bags and small leather goods are crucial to fashion brands. They can serve as a label’s most recognisable emblem, indicate a wearer’s desired social standing and values and drive revenue for fashion businesses. And they’re set to become even more important: global consumer spending in the category is set to grow to an estimated $100 billion by 2027, up from $72 billion in 2022, according to market research firm Euromonitor. Luxury bags are also seeing a shakeup from the emergence of more contemporary alternatives, streetwear-inspired looks and innovations in sustainable materials.
“No longer are luxury bags inaccessible. We used to talk a lot about high net worth individuals, and how we targeted them five to ten years ago,” said Ian Earnshaw, chief commercial officer of Mulberry. “Today, the actual customer base is a lot broader.”
In this Masterclass, BoF Insights’ Benjamin Schneider and Diana Lee unpack their report on the category, “The New Era of Designer Bags: Redefining Leather Goods,” alongside Earnshaw and Richard Johnson, chief commercial officer of Mytheresa.
Read the latest BoF Insights report to get BoF’s perspective on designer bags and small leather goods, covering key competitive shifts, including what, why and how consumers buy in the US and China, the category’s biggest markets.
The group’s flagship Prada brand grew more slowly but remained resilient in the face of a sector-wide slowdown, with retail sales up 7 percent.
The guidance was issued as the French group released first-quarter sales that confirmed forecasts for a slowdown. Weak demand in China and poor performance at flagship Gucci are weighing on the group.
Consumers face less, not more, choice if handbag brands can't scale up to compete with LVMH, argues Andrea Felsted.
As the French luxury group attempts to get back on track, investors, former insiders and industry observers say the group needs a far more drastic overhaul than it has planned, reports Bloomberg.