The Business of Fashion Podcast

For nearly a decade, the luxury sector has experienced what seemed like limitless growth, with brands like Louis Vuitton, Gucci, and Chanel pushing product prices higher — and seeing consumers pay up. However, recent quarterly reports have marked a sudden shift, with even industry giants reporting disappointing revenue. As luxury editor Robert Willliams explains, “These brands are omnipresent and people are seeing them everywhere. Whether consumers finally pull the trigger is so much about their economic confidence, this feel-good factor. Are things going to be better for me next month than they are today?”This week, BoF executive editor Brian Baskin and luxury editor Robert Williams discuss the forces contributing to this downturn, the implications for top brands and potential strategies luxury players are exploring to reignite growth.Key Insights: Global economic uncertainty has hit U.S. and European luxury spending hard. “Whether they finally pull the trigger [on a big purchase] is about economic confidence,” explains Williams, noting that factors like inflation, wage stagnation, and election cycles have consumers second-guessing expensive purchases. There are similar issues in Europe, with proximity to conflicts in the Middle East, Ukraine and Russia additionally impacting consumer sentiment and spending power.However, according to Williams, the biggest issue is China pulling back on this type of spending. China’s luxury market has always been a growth engine, but changing economic sentiments and less travel due to COVID are affecting luxury sales. “[Chinese consumers] are really holding out for when they feel better about the economy. … They’re holding out for when they can feel like they can get a deal because prices are higher in China than most of the world for luxury brands,” says Williams. Many consumers are frustrated with steep price increases, as seen with Dior’s Lady Dior bag, which has jumped 76% in price since 2019. “Customers are quite fed up with how dramatic the price increases have been often for like for like products,” Williams states, adding that consumers often feel they’re “spending a lot more for something that’s not necessarily as good.” Even if quality hasn’t declined, the perception has, especially with social media spotlighting any issues. “With the way our Internet culture works, if someone has an issue with the product, they can make that so public in a way and really disenchant a lot of people and their audience and make them question, is this high price worth it?”Facing a saturated market after years of rapid growth and price hikes, many forecast that 2025 and 2026 are to be similarly stagnant or negative periods for sales.” Even if it wasn't just a question of the prices or if there weren't these other macroeconomic factors, there could be a sense of having saturated the market, of people needing to be bored with fashion a bit so that then they can rediscover it. I'm not sure that it's the right time to introduce the next big idea if you were the one who had it,” says Williams. “Because if you're among the brands whose sales are quite negative … then how much can you really invest in telling the world that you're the one who has the next big idea?”.Additional Resources:Inside Luxury’s Slowdown | BoFWhy Some Luxury Groups Are Doing Better Than Others | BoF Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sammy Basso left an indelible mark on our community last year at BoF VOICES 2023. Sammy had a rare genetic condition called Progeria that accelerates ageing, affecting only one in 20 million people, with an average life expectancy of 13-and-a-half years. Last year at VOICES, Sammy celebrated his 28th birthday with us, and shared his extraordinary resilience and passion, for life and for research. “To be a patient and scientist is beautiful for me because it is a great antidote against fear,” he reflected. “Never think you are not enough to make a difference ... So many people said it’s impossible to do research into such a rare disease. But now thanks to that, we are opening ways to treat so many others. We are making a difference.”This week on The BoF Podcast, Basso in conversation with friend Annastasia Seebohm Giacomini about the importance of his research and his philosophy of how to live a full life.Key Insights: When asked how he maintains such a positive outlook despite the daily challenges of his condition, Basso explains, “I must be positive, because if I won’t be, I would limit my life more than progeria itself. My life is worth living, progeria or not. I love my life …This is the only possibility for the universe to be myself. And you are the only possibility for the universe to be in the stars. So we can’t waste this great opportunity. We need to be the best copy of ourselves.”Reflecting on his outlook toward life, Basso shares the importance of gratitude in his daily routine: “Progeria taught me not to believe anything to be granted. I’ve risked my life so many times, I’ve wished to die several times, so now every day for me is a gift. When I wake up in the morning, I have to be grateful for that day. I must be grateful for that day.” Basso finds strength in community and expresses his deep gratitude for the role of his family and friends in his life. “They are the reason why I wake up every morning. Sometimes when I’m too tired, I remember that my life is not only mine. So if I can’t do it for myself, I must wake up for them and do it.”Additional Resources:BoF VOICES 2023: Finding Hope in the DarkRegister now to join us at BoF Voices 2024, our annual gathering for big thinkers, streaming live from November 12 to 14 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In recent years, sports has provided a rich ground for fashion partnerships. Where even three years ago Dior’s tie-up with Paris Saint-Germain was relatively novel, today it’s harder to find luxury brands that aren’t at least dabbling in football, Formula 1 or other sports. These deals are also getting increasingly elaborate, with brands outfitting athletes, teams and even entire leagues on and off the field. This new wave of partnerships is about more than just looks or finding new audiences — it’s about cultural relevance. “Fashion brands have looked to [sports] to market their products to groups of consumers who maybe weren’t targeted by these brands previously, and athletes themselves have become major brands and media businesses in their own right,” says BoF sports correspondent Daniel-Yaw Miller.This week on The Debrief, Executive Editor Brian Baskin and Senior Correspondent Sheena Butler-Young sit down with Daniel-Yaw Miller to explore how the worlds of fashion and sports are colliding like never before.Key Insights: For a partnership to be successful, it must feel authentic. Arsenal's collaboration with London-based brand Labrum, which presented a runway show at Arsenal's stadium is a prime example. The jersey colours draw influence from the Pan-African flag and hint to the histories of the players and the club. "That partnership makes sense on a cultural level and fans can buy into that authentic messaging rather than just a logo swap,” he says.As individual athletes gain larger followings, brands see more appeal in creating tailored partnerships with rising stars like Coco Gauff and Angel Reese. “Athletes now have a direct bond with fans that the previous generation of stars never had,” Miller notes. “Sports fans have had insights into Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka’s lives since they were teenagers. They’ve grown with them, and that’s at the very essence of their appeal to these brands.”The rise of women’s sports has opened doors for fashion brands that previously overlooked the sector. "And that's really opened up the sports industry, which has traditionally been extremely male dominated. So a whole range of luxury womenswear brands that previously never really had an entry point into the sports industry,” Miller explains. Some sports struggle to find traction in the fashion world. While Formula 1 has embraced luxury, baseball remains on the sidelines. “Baseball has never quite broken out to have true global appeal in a sense that fashion could leverage,” Miller says. “I think baseball is very similar to where Formula One was before the Liberty Media acquisition, where there was a strict atmosphere around showing an interest in things that are outside the direct line of business for a baseball organisation that's hampered how much the sport and the athletes have been able to be in fashion.”Additional Resources:Fashion’s Sports Obsession Is No Accident | BoF How Athletes Became Fashion Week Royalty | BoF.Inside the Big Business of Styling Athletes | BoF Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Khalid Al Tayer, Managing Director of Al Tayer Insignia and CEO of the luxury e-commerce platform Ounass, leads one of the Middle East’s most powerful retail networks. In his first public interview at Oud Fashion Talks, Al Tayer shares insights into the rapid evolution of the Middle Eastern luxury market, the region's growing influence on global trends, and how his business approaches e-commerce with a customer-first mindset. He also discusses the strategic importance of respecting and investing in the Middle Eastern customer while creating opportunities for regional talent to flourish in the luxury landscape.“The brands that have taken [the Middle Eastern] customer as a very important customer and respect them are seeing benefit. The ones that approach this customer as, ‘They’re just going to buy what we make, and we’re going to do … a good enough job because we’re busy somewhere else,’ are not benefiting. Respect the Middle Eastern customer,” shares Al Tayer.This week on The BoF Podcast, BoF founder and editor-in-chief Imran Amed sits down with Al Tayer to discuss the growing influence of the Middle Eastern luxury market and how businesses can succeed by prioritising the evolving needs of the regional customer.Key Insights: Despite challenges in global luxury, Al Tayer points to the Middle East as a resilient outlier in the industry, especially post-Covid. Brand investment in top-tier store experiences, thoughtful activations, and tailored assortments have fostered a deeper connection with the local customer. “The Middle East … has been a shining candle in the industry generally because of the resilience and the growing sophistication of the Middle Eastern customer,” Al Tayer notes, attributing this shift to brands recognising the importance of this loyal market.Al Tayer forecasts that e-commerce will soon make up half of all luxury retail in the region, with Ounass already pushing double-digit growth in this area. “In the next few years … 50 percent of the sales of retail will be online,” he says, describing an evolving model he calls “luxury convenience.” While physical stores will still offer unparalleled experiences, online platforms like Ounass meet the growing demand for digital access and seamless customer journeys.Al Tayer attributes his company’s success to “fanatical focus” and the dedication of his team. “First and foremost, it's all about team and surrounding yourself with the right people,” he says. “I try to build trust by allowing them to have ownership. When they have ownership, they really drive the business like it's their own.” In an industry that requires high levels of execution, he recommends patience and focusing on the details that matter. “Focus on what you’re doing and get it right,” he advises, urging new entrepreneurs to remain committed and data-driven.Additional Resources:BoF Insights | Fashion in the Middle East: Optimism and Transformation What Escalation in the Middle East War Means for the Industry | BoF Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.