Analysis: French ready-to-wear, between collapse and hope

Paris - Under pressure from fast fashion and second-hand fashion, the ready-to-wear sector is faltering: 2025 has been marked by a series of bankruptcies, receiverships and liquidations. However, experts believe a rebound is possible, driven by a renewed focus on brand DNA, innovation and moving upmarket.

At the end of this year, the brand IKKS has just been acquired but will lose half of its employees. Jott has been placed into receivership and Anne Fontaine has had its recovery plan approved. The list of struggling or defunct French companies in the sector is extensive, including Camaïeu; Kookaï; Jennyfer; André; San Marina; Minelli; Comptoir des Cotonniers; Princesse Tam Tam; and Kaporal.

Nearly 1,500 clothing stores closed in France in 2024, according to a parliamentary report. The Union of Textile Industries reports that the workforce has shrunk from 400,000 employees in the 1970s to 60,000 today. This figure, however, does not include retail employees, who numbered 70,000 at the end of 2023, according to the National Clothing Federation.

Brutal 'impoverishment' and 'sharp decline'

Traditional players have navigated the difficult transition to online sales, Covid-19 and inflation. Now, they face competition from second-hand and ultra-fast fashion. This represents a “profound upheaval,” according to Gildas Minvielle, director of the economic observatory at the Institut Français de la Mode (IFM). According to the IFM, 13 percent of sales by value and nearly 30 percent of volumes purchased now go through these two sales channels.

“The market share gained by these new entrants is very significant and very damaging for more established players,” Minvielle explained to AFP. “If the market had been buoyant, we could have hoped there would be room for everyone, but that is not the case.”

With an average price per item from Shein or Temu at nine euros, three times less than traditional mid-range products, these Asian groups are causing a brutal “impoverishment.” He adds this is happening “in a context where purchasing power is not very strong.”

To trace the source of the “sharp decline,” one must go back to the 90s. This period saw the “arrival of first-generation fast-fashion brands” like Zara and H&M, states Benoît Heilbrunn, a philosopher and marketing professor at ESCP Business School. He notes they offered “collections that change every week to compel purchases.”

“French brands have failed to keep up because they did not have, and still do not have, an industrial model,” notes the brand specialist, highlighting that 97 percent of textiles consumed in France are imported. “The other problem is that French textile brands haven't had a story to tell for years,” he laments. “We never talk about innovation; we never talk about products.”

'Death spiral'

Fashion and retail expert Françoise Clément agrees. She points to brands that have remained in their “comfort zone,” trying to “buy the consumer with promotions but ultimately failing to create value.” According to the consultant, a former textile director for Carrefour, brands must hold on to their “core DNA” and offer “clear positioning” to survive.

The ready-to-wear sector is like an “hourglass,” she explains. The top of the hourglass, representing luxury and “heritage” brands, remains strong due to its prestige. At the lower end, there is a race to the bottom on price, a “death spiral,” which nonetheless finds an audience. In between, the mid-range is the segment “most in difficulty.”

Mid-range brands must “diversify and premiumise” and, above all, not imitate fast fashion, believes Clément. The future requires a balance between “quality, attractiveness, innovation and desirability.” She cites examples such as Lacoste and Aigle; Le Slip Français for French-made products; and Decathlon, which combines “accessibility and innovation.” The clothing crisis is “not inevitable,” she insists. Far from the prevailing “gloom,” “opportunities” exist for “proactive brands.”

The annual State of Fashion report by BoF and McKinsey identifies several strategic areas for development. These include the “necessary” use of artificial intelligence; the diversification of production locations to counter the “turbulence” of international customs duties; moving upmarket; and integrating a second-hand offering. It is a vast programme.

This article was translated to English using an AI tool.

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