While fashion labels display their collections, Saudi consumers reciprocate with their brand awareness and brand loyalty.
In the process, the sophisticated shoppers demand quality service and value for money and carefully look for new product lines from their preferred brands.
According to a study, the market share of branded apparel has witnessed a steady increase in the last decade thanks to changes in consumer tastes and converging global fashion trends.
The major findings were related to womenswear, footwear, childrenswear, menswear and eyewear.
Apparel retail industry is one of the most competitive and developed segments of retailing in Saudi Arabia, with the sales figures estimated to be SAR8.55 billion in 2005G, up from SAR8.36 billion in 2000G.
Womenswear is the largest retail apparel segment in the Saudi market, which accounted for 54 percent of total branded retail sales, while Riyadh remains the largest market for womenswear.
Footwear is the second largest sector, which accounted for almost 20 percent of apparel sales, while Alhokair has a dominant position in the footwear sector, carrying the largest brands, including Aldo, Nine West and Nike.
Sales of childrenswear, which are high in Saudi Arabia due to the young population and the high birth rate, accounted for 15 percent of total sales.
Menswear is an emerging segment in the Saudi fashion retail market accounting for around 6% of total apparel sales in 2004G, while eyewear in 2004G accounted for just 5% of total apparel sales.
In the final analysis, the high-end apparel brands are present in malls and are proven to be selling successfully, while the mid-market continues to be, very strong demand for branded fashion.
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