In its latest report "Trends & Behaviors : The Covid Consumer", released earlier this month, Heuritech analyzes post-lockdown fashion trends from May to July. Overview of the results with Célia Poncelin, Chief Marketing Officer of this fashion-applied artificial intelligence company.

By Ludmilla Intravaia

Le Boudoir Numérique : Your study shows a significant difference between the attitude of Chinese consumers, which you call revenge spending, and that of Europeans and Americans, much more cautious, after the lockdown lifting.

Célia Poncelin, Chief Marketing Officer at Heuritech : The Chinese consumer is completely different from that of Europe and the United States. He is optimistic, he saved money during confinement, for those who are lucky enough to have a steady job and he intends to spend it, much more than before. After months without fashion, he is eager to indulge in luxury and wants to take his revenge by consuming a lot. The European and American consumer is much more cautious. He is more pessimistic and will wait to know more about what will happen, after the lockdown, to spend his money. In Europe, we lack visibility on the future and we depend on announcements from governments, the situation being very unusual for us, compared to China which has already experienced similar situations before. Regarding e-shops, it remains complicated, there are delays on orders, the terms of packages returns are uncertain, in short, everything works a little on a case by case basis. All this does not really encourage us to consume. But who knows, maybe this summer we will take our revenge.

In terms of trends in May, June and July, what forecasts do you make for China?

The trend is a punchy optimism that recalls the joy of breaking out of confinement, the desire to party with sparkly sequins, to express yourself with strong symbols, such as wearing the big logos of your favorite brands on T-shirts, for example, to show your pride of buying and belonging to opinion leaders communities. Our study reports an increase of 13% in logomania, compared to summer 2019. After being locked up at home, in very simple clothes, the Chinese consumer wants to wear red, yellow, orange, electric blue, vibrant, flashy and fluorescent colors to celebrate the arrival of summer.

And for us?

There are two moods, minimalist romanticism and comfortable sportswear-loungewear. On one hand, there is this nostalgy of the past, of the time before confinement, where you could go out without hindrance and on the other, the desire for practical clothes where comfort takes precedence over aesthetics, since we stayed at home for a very long time. The cautious consumer will turn less to pop colors than the Chinese consumer but rather to pastels which evoke the sweetness of life, in blue, pink and purple or to earth tones, neutral and sober, like beige and khaki. Puff sleeves and oversized fits will be present in the silhouettes, echoing the romanticism of spring, its floral prints, its flowing fabrics. And at the same time, as people have been doing sports and taking care of their bodies during confinement, the leggings, cycling shorts, sweatshorts, sweatshirts and track pants are predominent, the materials are comfortable and soft, like velvet, which is usually rare in summer because it is warm but which is growing by 13% compared to the previous summer.

What did you learn from hashtags analysis on Instagram?

The growing of hashtags related to sport like #yoga, #homeworkout and #healthylifestyle show the will of the people in lockdown to maintain a healthy lifestyle, despite the circumstances. One post on 4 concerning Covid-19 incorporates the keyword healthylifestyle, it's huge. This proves that fashion is re-centralizing around the notion of well-being, a trend that has been talked about for a long time, for example with oversized style or slipper shoes, but that the Coronavirus crisis has accelerated. I wouldn’t say that the fashion topic has grown on Instagram, but it certainly didn’t disappear with Covid-19, consumers and influencers still keep talking about it. On the other hand, two things that we did not see before appeared with the crisis : the first is that Internet users post many photos of them at home. This new way of penetrating people's privacy is already fully accepted, especially by influencers. The second thing is this nostalgia for happy days about which I spoke previously and which consists in publishing lots of pictures taken before confinement, as evidenced by the rise of the hashtag #TBT, Throwback Thursday (practice aimed at posting photos archives on social networks, AN). This reminiscence of the past, embodied by #TBT, shows how eager we are to get out of the crisis, in a more ethical approach.

What do you mean by that?

There is an aspiration for sustainability, a desire to consume more responsibly. People want to buy locally made products because they now want to support the economy of their own country. They think a little more about their act of purchasing, an awareness perhaps linked to the masks crisis and the dependence on production from other countries like China, for example. For their part, the brands with which we are in contact, tell us : it's time to reflect on previous practices to change them.

By embracing digital transformation, for instance?

Exactly. Everyone is moving towards digital. Brands are in the process of implementing online or 3D showroom solutions. Shanghai fashion week took place in a digital format in March and the other fashion weeks will follow soon. The all digital will be one of the strategies to implement in the coming months, for sure.

* To download the report "Trends & Behaviors : The Covid Consumer”, it’s here. Heuritech website is there.

* To find out more about Heuritech read the following Boudoir Numérique papers :

- “To help fashion brands decision making with AI during the Covid-19 crisis”

- Covid-19 - Heuritech Launches a solidarity program for fashion brands

- "Cross-fertilization between tech and fashion is the strength of Heuritech"

- “AI can contribute to the virtuous circle of sustainable fashion”

- Will leopard print pleated skirts be trending any time soon ? AI already knows it !