With large budgets being invested in the production and execution of fashion shows, companies aim to deliver impactful, memorable events that draw wide coverage, influence consumer interest in their brand and increase potential conversions. To help us in understanding the link between consumer searches and fashion week, Launchmetrics partnered with the fashion search engine Lyst, and also see which influencers and celebrities also had the greatest impact on buyer trends.
The numbers confirmed a clear correlation between fashion weeks and brand media impact, which pathed the way to increased consumer interest. Based on the analysis of the buying behavior of over 104 million shoppers and the Media Impact ValueTM of the four global fashion weeks and influencers during the fashion month of February 2020, together, Launchmetrics and Lyst share insights into a selection of the top brands and trendsetters of 2020.
In this article you’ll learn…
The Extent of Brand Impact on Consumer Demand
Diving into the data behind the four major fashion weeks, we look at the extent to which the top-ranked brands according to MIV® influenced consumer demand.
New York Fashion Week generated $154.3 million in Media Impact Value™, for which the top brands included Marc Jacobs, Tom Ford, and Michael Kors. Search platform Lyst found that search queries for these brands increased significantly between 3rd to 12th February. Consumer interest in Marc Jacobs rose by 42%, Tom Ford to 30% and Michael Kors to 28%.
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Focusing on London, the event drummed up a total $62.7M in Media Impact ValueTM and reveals similar results for search trends: while the Victoria Beckham show ranked number one by MIV®, end-user requests for the brand increased by 8%; and Burberry, which ranked second, saw a 6% increase in brand interest.
Milan, with $142.4M in MIV®, confirmed that consumer behavior followed the same pattern with its top three brands showing increases in buyer inquiries: Gucci with a 6%, Prada with 3% and Versace with 2% increase in searches.
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And lastly Paris Fashion Week generated $166.7 million MIV®, where the top-ranked brands included Dior, Chanel, and Saint Laurent. Lyst saw search queries begin to increase in the first week of March; Dior by 20%, Chanel by 8% and Saint Laurent by 9%.
Influencers Live up to Their Name
Influencers play an important role in identifying and triggering trends on and off the runway. Looking at the data of the four coveted global fashion weeks, we examined which opinion leaders had the greatest influence in terms of Media Impact ValueTM, search queries and buying behavior. These observations offer insights into how brands can benefit from collaborations with influencers executed at pivotal industry moments and leverage the consumer demand generated to their advantage.
Leonie Hanne - Oversized Suits, Croissant Bags & Metallics
German London-based Leonie Hanne tops the list of the most influential trendsetters this season. She generated a MIV® of $566K in New York, and in London, she racked up $328K in Media Impact ValueTM. Examining her outfits worn at fashion weeks in these two cities, data showed that Leonie Hanne's fashion choices boosted demand for similar items, cuts, and colors by an average of 206%.
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The items that increased in popularity within 24 hours of being seen on Leonie were wide-leg flared pants (+102%), mules (+229%), metallic dresses (+505%), feathered dresses (+177%) and oversized blazers (+389%). Leonie was often seen with “croissant” bags, mostly from Bottega Veneta or Prada, which have reported a 39% increase in popularity by Lyst's data since the end of the fashion weeks.
Chiara Ferragni - Gold Jewelry, Coats & Polka Dots
Searches for fashion items worn by Chiara Ferragni increased, on average, 170% over the course of Milan Fashion Week. Her Media Impact ValueTM topped the influencer rankings with $3.4 million, including 6 of her own publications posts and 283 mentions on social networks and media.
Chiara's influence on buyer demand for the looks she wears is hard to beat: she attended the Prada show wearing a gray checkered dress with feathers and accessorized the outfit with a small pink bag from the brand. The impact? The demand instantly increased by 150% for the dress and 225% for the bag respectively. Then, Chiara paired the XXL chain with a strapless red-black polka dot dress, which immediately led to 245% more searches for “polka dot” dresses. Finally, her appearance in a quilted white coat at the Fendi show resulting in searches for similar pieces rising by 200%.
Camila Coelho - Cargo Pants, Velvet & Color Blocking
Brazilian-American entrepreneur Camila Coelho wore over 50 different outfits during New York Fashion Week, which led to $1.3M in MIV®, and a further $2M in MIV® generated in Paris, ranking her as top influencer according to Launchmetrics, and driving a 124% increase in demand from shoppers.
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Cargo pant love🤎 #ootn #lookdodia Eu e meu amor por calça cargo! Quem também curte?
Probably the most spectacular outfit worn by Camila Coelho was debuted at Nepalese-American fashion designer, Prabal Gurung’s show in New York. The brand's cream color blocking cargo pants resulted in 138% more searches for such pants within 24 hours and a 108% increase in searches for Prabal Gurung items. Whilst attending the Jonathan Simkhai show, Camila wore a peach-colored ensemble and within 24 hours, searches for peach-colored fashion items skyrocketed by 182%. The demand for the elements she combined - knitted cardigan (+25%), turtleneck sweater and velvet pants (+450%) - also increased in popularity according to Lyst.
Key learnings
Clearly there is a strong connection between Fashion Weeks, Influencers and demand for “In” items by fashion-conscious shoppers. Brands should be prepared to constantly reevaluate the rollout of their influencer marketing strategies, and make sure they use all resources available to drive consumer demand - not only among the relevant target groups but also across various markets, as seen by the examples shared by two influencers – Leonie Hanne and Camilla Coelho. Understanding consumer demands relative to searches at fashion week is an essential indicator of the performance of brands.
- Leverage your fashion weeks strategy: pay attention to which influencers attending multiple fashion weeks and key markets
- Pick up the right, authentic influencer for your brand, and negotiate accordingly.
- Use your own media channels and resources to drive the collaboration with your testimonials further; never underestimate the power of own voice.
- Use the right mix of voices – including micro and macro-influencers, celebrities and testimonials.
- And lastly, monitor the situation right after fashion weeks to boost sales.
You can find all the data takeaways on The Launchmetrics and Lyst Infographic here to develop a quick understanding of how consumer searches impact fashion week!
See the impact made by fashion brands during the four major fashion weeks in our report Data on the Runway 2020: Decoding Key Industry Shifts Through the Data, in which we breakdown the voices generating the most value during the fashion weeks and more.
By Launchmetrics Content Team
The Launchmetrics content team is always on the lookout for new trends in the fashion and technology sector. We are geeks with style and lovers of good stories!
