Canadian Apparel Monthly Digest - March 2025

Canadian Apparel Monthly Digest March 2025

Canadian Apparel Insights

Retail Apparel Update

Canada’s apparel sales during 2024 decreased by 2.8% according to Statistics Canada to C$36.5 billion. The decrease was the apparel category’s first sales decline since Canadian retail apparel sales fell 23.6% in 2020 because of Covid. Driving the 2024 decrease in apparel sales was the 3.8% decline in women’s apparel which accounted for 55.1% of total apparel sales. The 1.6% decrease in mens sales was less than the 6.0% decrease in juvenile sales. However, juvenile apparel only accounted for 10.1% of 2024 sales.
Hudson’s Bay’s (X-Saks) share of Canadian apparel sales during 2024 fell to 2.2% from 2.4% in 2023 and 3.7% in 2020.
Gap Canada’s corporate sales decreased 3.2% to US$1,182 million in 2024. During 2024, Old Navy’s sales decreased 3.1%, while those for Gap/Gap Kids, Banana Republic and Athleta decreased 1.8%, 1.2% and 13.4% respectively.
Savers Value Village, Canada’s largest resale apparel retailer with 165 stores surprisingly reported its total sales fell 2.7% in 2024, while its comp store sales decreased 2.5%.
Winners with 307 stores in 2024 was Canada’s largest apparel retailer with a market share of 7.3%.

Key Metrics

Apparel specialty store sales in Canada increased 10.3% during January 2025.
Canadian apparel exports increased 23.5% in January. Apparel exports to the U.S. were up 39.3%. During the month apparel imports increased 23.0%.
Canadian apparel manufacturer sales in January 2025 decreased 24.6% to C$17.8 million.
Canadian apparel prices during 2024 decreased on average by 2.8%. From 2020-2024 the CPI for all apparel fell 4.7%, while the CPI for juvenile apparel decreased 10.5%.
The average Canadian/U.S. exchange rate in 2024 was $1.37 vs. C$1.35 in 2023 according to the Bank of Canada.

U.S. Apparel Insights

Retail Apparel Update

Nordstrom’s total sales in 2024 increased 2.2%, while its comp sales increased 3.6%. The company ended its 2024 fiscal year with 92 Nordstrom and 277 Rack stores.
Kohls, with more than 1,100 stores, reported that in 2024 its total sales fell 7.2%, while its comp sales were down 6.5%.
Dillard’s sales in its 272 stores decreased 4.8% in 2024
Macy’s Inc. sales decreased 3.5% in 2024. Sales in only Macy’s stores were down 4.2%, while Bloomingdale’s sales were up 1.0%

Key Metrics

U.S. apparel specialty store sales increased by only 0.5% (y/y) during the first two months of 2025.
The U.S. secondhand apparel market (including online and in-store resale as well as the donation/thrift sector) grew by 14% in 2024, which was its strongest annual growth since 2021 and outpacing the total retail clothing market by five times.

Note: The above information is excerpted from Trendex’s Canadian Apparel Insights 5-page monthly newsletter.