Amazon’s meteoric rise to the top of the apparel industry has been fueled by its focus on consumer interest in no-name attire.
Studies have shown that the modern consumer cares less about brand loyalty than ever before, which has allowed private-label apparel giants such as Amazon, Target and Walmart to take hold of the apparel market.
Amazon, now second only to Walmart in apparel sales, approached fashion designer Jackie Wilson a few months ago for her assistance in designing a name-brand quality knit top for women. The resultant product, among other similar offerings, has highlighted Amazon’s push for customer satisfaction. By acquiring positive online reviews of its private-label apparel products, Amazon has taken advantage of the modern trend by which most shopping begins with an online search.
The rise of Amazon’s apparel brand has come in part as a result of faltering consumer interest in name-brands such as Gap, Nike, Lululemon Athletica and Under Armour. This waning of brand-loyalty is due largely to the lack of interest among millennials in logos, who instead favor factors such as quality and affordability.
Amazon’s online search supremacy has been a major factor in its success, as consumers tend to search for clothing by typing names of generic products, such as “yoga pants,” rather than by typing names of specific brands.
As more and more fashion designers continue to sign on with private-label apparel brands, and as name-brands continue to tumble in popularity, it is apparent that brands such as Amazon and Walmart will continue to tighten their stranglehold on the apparel industry. If there’s anything to be learned from this, it’s that consumers are more willing to forego familiar brand names and logos for no-name products of similar or better quality.
Though the market is predominately controlled by these incredibly large, powerful brands, there is still room for smaller businesses to learn by their example and to take advantage of the downfall of brand loyalty overall. In order to survive in the future apparel market, brands will need to adapt to the shifting sands of consumer demand, and creating no-name apparel may be one way to do so.
