The economic lockdown imposed as part of the effort to curb spread of the coronavirus has changed shopping patterns, altered the retail landscape and could permanently change the fashion industry.
After fitting the item on a computer-generated avatar to see how it looks, in-store pickup gives shoppers a chance to touch clothes and return them on the spot if dissatisfied. The U.S. unemployment rate peaked at 14.7% in April – the highest since statistics were first compiled in 1948 – and fell to a still-high 7.9% in September. The unemployment rate was 3.5% in February, the U.S. Department of Labor reported.
That increased spending left fewer discretionary dollars for upscale clothing and footwear. Spending in the sector declined 24% in the second quarter, Goldman Sachs said. It is unclear if discretionary spending on office attire or night-on-the-town clothes will rebound to pre-pandemic levels.
Damn...that's a bad thing, huh?