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Luxury Couture: How Covid-19 Marred the Luxury Fashion Business in Italy?

Luxury brands are witnessing a great deal of impact due to the spreading of Coronavirus across the globe. The most affected region of them all was China, although most of the malls in the area have reopened. According to Vogue Business Reports, more than 80% of shopping malls in the cities, such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou. However, Italy has become the new epicentre of the virus.

 

Luxury-Couture-How-Covid-19-has-marred-the-Luxury-Fashion-Business-in-Italy

 

The Business Insider reported that the first outbreak Italy shook the luxury stocks. For over two weeks, from mid-January till the last week of January, the MSCI Europe Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods Index saw a drop in the market value by $54 billion. Before this outbreak, the industry accounted for $107.9 billion per Eric Sylvers of The Wall Street Journal – was put on lockdown. The decrease in the textiles and couture industry is enormous because most of the manufacturers are located in the northern region, which is locked down since the starting of March. The experts in the fashion industry have reported that the move has impacted the luxury sector already. It’s a big blow for the companies whose headquarters are located in this region. The names of the companies include Prada, Armani, Versace, Louis Vuitton, and Stella McCartney, whose production has been hampered immensely.

 

It was expected that the impact would not follow to the South of Italy, but as the PM announced the lockdown of the country, the southern part, which is the headquarters for most of the leather goods and jewelry manufacturing. The leather goods are often one of the top-performing sectors for a luxury brand, and one famous handbag can financially stability to stabilize the company. The survival of these companies is not solely dependent on the manufacturing, Italian factories are worried about the selling of the products. According to the Wall Street Journal, foreign buyers are canceling the orders of Italian textiles and products, impacting the entire clothing supply chain from companies who produce the fabrics, to those who create the clothes and accessories. Several luxury brands have canceled or postponed fashion shows, with many editors who attended Milan Fashion Week in February required to self-quarantine.

 

Silver lining in the form of Customization and Personalization 

By far, you have understood the seriousness of the widespread COVID-19, but there is a silver lining in this condition, which is customization and personalization. Living in a digitally connected world, consumers are more aware of the products available and what other people are buying. As a result, some have become more discerning about the products they purchase and expect more from brands, in both services and product offerings. Customization and personalization are great ways for companies to engage with existing customers and tap into new demographics. Here is how businesses can integrate these tactics into their products and services, and capitalize on the next generation of consumers.

 

  • Customized product offering 

In the time of crisis, this is the best alternative any fashion company can adhere to. People value experiences, self-expression, and discovery over material goods—but that doesn’t mean the two can’t go hand-in-hand. Eager to engage with brands and showcase their individuality. People are looking more and more to customizability; only can it increase sales. Customization gets consumers engaged with the brand because they are working with the company to create a unique product.

 

Sitting at home comfortably, indulging in self-isolation is boring; customization would give consumers a chance to become productive and more involved in leisure activities. What could be more fun than designing a luxury product?

 

  • Personalization

Personalization isn’t just limited to products—it can also be applied to marketing and services. Buyers have high demands for excellent service that include personalizing product selections to each individual and feeling like the brand values them as more than just a customer. According to the Deloitte study, millennials are also more willing to give up their data if it means they can get more personalized products or services in exchange. 70% of millennials don’t mind retailers tracking their browsing habits to receive personalized communications, and 28% who preferred personalized messages also expressed stronger brand loyalty.

 

Conclusion

 

Robust customization and personalization have been in the trend for quite some time now, but recent events suggest otherwise. Brands, like Prada, Versace, Stella McCartney, adapted with the change in the taste of the people. They were offering selective customization, but now they need to make it full-fledged if they wish to remain profitable in the current scenario.  iDesigniBuy works on similar grounds and is promoting increased customization and personalization. By installing the customization tools on your business site, you can sail through the turbulent times of Coronavirus.

 

Let us stand with you in the difficult times.