The North Face is hoping that the benefits of outdoor sports be available to all, via its Reset Normal initiative. Vans launched its Checkerboard Day in October 2020, an annual fundraising day where the brand donates to mental health and wellbeing charities.
Traditional luxury brands and retailers are also taking note on how to connect products with experiences that help consumers feel better. During the pandemic, Gucci promoted its Orgasmique SS20 collection by sponsoring a series of the Sex Ed podcast, a show that focuses on sexual wellness. Meanwhile, Bottega Veneta creative director Daniel Lee has shown comfortable pants and homey knits for Resort 2021, and created The Bottega Residency, an online programme of events aimed to bring hope and prevent loneliness during quarantine.
Make it easy to return to joy
When the pandemic is behind us, Arnold, Seidel and Rubin all see a time when a countertrend of high glamour and tailoring will arrive amid a rebirth of dress-up.
However, according to McKinsey and Company, newness is important to only 19 per cent of fashion consumers mid-pandemic, meaning that consumers will, for now, still want formal looks mixed with the timeless ease of comfort and sports.
For Klarna customers, such items have recently included a Burberry Montage sweatshirt with the word “love” written on the chest and an Alexander McQueen or Balenciaga Triple S sneaker (both most desired in pink).
Provide omnichannel calm
Retailers and brands will also have to consider how shopping for new, post-pandemic styles could play out in stores. Anxiety around fitting rooms, for instance, is expected to last beyond lockdowns, according to a report published by the EY Future Consumer Index, which found that 80 per cent of UK consumers will feel uncomfortable about trying on clothes in-store even after the pandemic is over.
Brands will need to take this into consideration. Comfortable outfits and sneakers will remain a socially distanced retail solution for those wanting to celebrate what Seidel foresees will be a period of “joy and optimism”.
This article was sponsored by Klarna.
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