Just Style

Wholesale makes up half of sales for 74% of fashion brands

Joor, the digital wholesale platform, found in a recent survey that nearly three-quarters of brands (74%) reported wholesale made up over half of their sales with the majority of brands (51%) ranking wholesale as their top channel for investment, over e-commerce and DTC retail stores.

‘The Current State Of Wholesale B2B Fashion’ survey published by Joor shares industry insights of over 14,000 brands and 600,000 buyers as part of its client network.

Joor explains the survey compiles an understanding of various aspects of businesses — from wholesale priorities to growth challenges, as well as features they value in their digital tools.

It highlights that in comparison to last year, 75% of brands identified having the same or greater portion of their business coming from wholesale. While 33% reported a shift from direct-to-consumer (DTC) towards wholesale with wholesale actively growing as a percentage of total business.

Joor attributes this trend to be most pronounced across Asia-Pacific (APAC) and Europe where almost half, 46% and 43% respectively, the brands reported having a larger portion of their business driven by wholesale compared to last year.

The wholesale platform forecasts that in 2023, digital wholesale is expected to hit $1.8trn in the US alone. This, Joor says, illustrates the strength of the market with two-thirds (67%) of its brands reporting sales volumes equal to or greater than last year.

Joor further points out that despite 'natural regional nuances' in market dynamics, all brands surveyed shared a mutual appreciation of the advantages of digital wholesale. Close to 96% of brands agreed it saves time as opposed to non-digital processes, 91% said it increases order accuracy and provides real-time data and another 88% of brands said it provided better visibility of inventory.

Kristin Savilia, CEO of Joor, says: "Our exclusive Joor survey illustrates an extremely buoyant global wholesale landscape. Fashion brands around the world recognise the benefits of wholesale, not only to increase sales volume but also to boost brand awareness, acquire new customers and enter new markets. Wholesale is a critical distribution channel for brands globally, and its importance continues to grow. This growth represents a significant shift away from e-commerce and DTC channels, a marked change in the industry."