The Financial Times has written an article quoting the IADS on expectations of Chinese spending oversees. The article reports the IADS' expectations for a strong return of overseas Chinese spending are still muted across many markets.

Business of Fashion article 

Making sense of numbers, away from the noise: 2022 department store performances reveal stark regional contrasts. While Europe experienced significant recovery (+7% from 2021 to 2022), the Americas and Asia presented a more diverse picture resulting in flat results collectively due to varied market responses (with the Americas at +1% and Asia at 0%).

The IADS Global Department Store Monitor was launched as the "IADS 100" in 2021 to make sense of quarterly reports and various fiscal exercise closure dates across the globe, and to provide a comprehensive benchmark for the department store industry, starting with 2019 numbers as a point of reference. This observatory analyses department stores' financial data year-over-year to gauge the state of the industry's recovery post-Covid.

During the tumultuous period from 2019 to 2022, department stores had to redefine their benchmarks for success. The past years, marked by unprecedented events such as the global pandemic and significant geopolitical upheavals, reshaped the retail environment. Traditional metrics of comparison with pre-2019 figures became obsolete as many new challenges created an unprecedented operating field for department store players: how can results be compared in a situation that has not existed before? Department stores indeed embraced a new paradigm, focusing on innovation and adaptability in response to these dynamic challenges, setting new standards for measuring progress and success.

The 2022 fiscal year exercise for department stores around the world was all about learning how to weather new storms while dealing with the impacts of the past 4 years of disruption. The IADS Global Department Store Monitor looks into how retailers across Asia, Europe, and the Americas faired and just how sound their recovery plan has been in a new age of volatility.

2022 was all about navigating turbulence on the road to recovery

The 2022 fiscal exercise proved difficult for retailers as they faced ripple effects from the COVID-19 pandemic as well as several new challenges such as social and political unrest, supply chain disruptions, geopolitical and energy crises, as well as inflation. Here is how main global markets fared in 2022:

• Asia: (2022 panel average: turnover remained flat at +0% vs 2021): Chinese department stores generally saw declines in sales, influenced by long-term COVID-19 restrictions, which resulted in their turnover falling below 2021 levels. In contrast, Indian retailers like Lifestyle (Landmark Group) and Shopper's Stop showed significant and steady growth in 2022 versus 2021. Japanese stores reported mixed results, with some showing slight improvements while others continued to struggle. Korean (Hyundai at +40% and Lotte at +12%), Filipino (SM at +25% and Robinson's Retail at +61%), Sri Lankan (Odel at +12%) and Thai (Central Retail Corp at +21%) department stores also exceeded 2021 results. These trends highlight the diverse impacts of the pandemic and the emergence of new regional market dynamics on the department store sector in Asia.
• Europe: (2022 panel average: turnover increase of +7% vs 2021): Europe illustrates a pattern of gradual recovery in 2022 following the significant downturns of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This recovery, however, is not uniform across the region, with stores like Harrods in the UK showing extreme year-over-year growth (+192%), while others like John Lewis faced more flat results (+0.3%). Overall, sales results in Europe were positive between 2021 and 2022 for the department stores monitored in the UK, Switzerland, Sweden, Spain, Italy, Finland, and Estonia, even if only slightly for some. European stores have demonstrated resilience and adaptability, implementing strategies like enhancing digital presence and diversifying product offerings to navigate the evolving retail landscape and meet changing consumer demands.
• Americas: (2022 panel average: turnover increase of +1% vs 2021): In the Americas, the situation varied. American department store market experienced a complex recovery trajectory through 2022. Key points include the mixed performance of U.S. retailers, where some stores, like Dillard's and Nordstrom, managed to grow in 2022 compared to 2021, while others struggled (Macy's, Kohl's). Latin American retailers saw varying results with Chilean retailers Falabella, Ripley, and Cencosud Paris unable to see growth in 2022 against 2021, while Mexican retailer El Palacio de Hierro and Ecuadorian retailer De Prati saw strong growth in 2022 compared to 2021. This indicates a regional disparity in recovery, influenced by factors such as political shifts, inflationary pressures, and consumer spending trends.

Looking ahead: what can be expected for 2023

The global retail landscape is undergoing a seismic transformation, marked by a surge in department stores changing ownership, going private, or engaging in discussions about such transitions since fiscal year 2022 and continuing into 2023. Notable instances include Japan's Seven & I Holdings selling Sogo & Seibu to Fortress Investment Group, Hong Kong's Sogo (Lifestyle) opting for privatization, and France's Galeries Lafayette Group divesting BHV Marais. These shifts, also exemplified by the sale of Sweden's Ahlens, or South Africa's Woolworths divesting Australia's David Jones unit, underline a strategic response to the challenges of operating in public markets during tumultuous times. The trend towards privatization offers companies the flexibility and agility to swiftly implement changes and adapt to volatile market conditions.

Globally, complex geopolitical and economic factors are also at play. Ongoing conflicts, such as those involving Israel and Ukraine, are impacting supply chains and driving inflation. Consumers are cautious about non-essential spending, potentially affecting future performance. Consumer preferences are evolving towards in-store experiences and smaller store formats, while retailers are trying to find the right balance between online and physical sales to optimize profitability. In fact, efficiency and profitability are top priorities for the future of retail, driving players to explore AI technology integration which will help the business adapt quickly to changing consumer behaviours. Being dynamic is important for retailers to remain competitive and relevant in the current dynamic environment.

The IADS Global Department Store Monitor, while being a subjective selection of department store companies which fiscal year results can be compared year over year, serves as a tool for retailers and department store players to better understand how their performance compares across the global landscape in more turbulent times. Such results have become a key indicator of retail performance as external forces, which used to not be considered to impact fiscal results, have multiplied and become part of the conversation. The IADS Global Department Store Monitor is the only report that has been keeping track of such a selection of global department store retailers since 2019, providing a deeper and more accurate conclusion about the retail landscape.

List of companies updated in the IADS Global Department Store Monitor:

Cencosud Paris, Central Retail Corp, Coin, Coop group, De Prati, Dillard's, El Corte Ingles, El Palacio de Hierro, Falabella, Fenwick, Golden Eagle, H2O (Hankyu Hanshin), Hanwha Galleria (Hanwha Group), Harrods, Hyundai, Isetan Mitsukoshi, J Front (Daimaru Matsuzakaya), Jelmoli (Swiss Prime Site), John Lewis, Kaubamaja, Kohl's, Liberty, Lifestyle (Landmark Group), Liverpool, Lotte, Macy's, Maoye, Marks & Spencer, Marui (0101), Matahari, Myer, New World, NK, Nordstrom, Odel (Softlogic Group), Parkson Retail Group Ltd, Rainbow, Ripley, Rustan's (Robinsons Retail), Selfridges Group, Shopper's Stop, SM, Sogo Seibu(Seven & I Holdings), Stockmann, Takashimaya, Tobu, Tokyu, Wangfujing, Wing On, and Wushang (former Wuhan).

Read the full press release below:

IADS PRESS RELEASE: IADS Global Department Store Monitor

Read the full press release, in French, below:

IADS Communiqué de press: IADS Global Department Store Monitor

Access the IADS Global Department Store Monitor datasheet here:

IADS Global Department Store Monitor

More than just an opportunity, retail media could become a driving force for department stores' physical flagships and their perenniality.

The surge in interest in retail media, highlighted by extensive media coverage over the past three years and concrete results in companies such as Amazon or Walmart, indicates its growing significance in the retail sector. Many see the $100bn worldwide retail media market as a lifebuoy for an industry where margins are tight. Going beyond, retail media could also represent a transformative force for department stores: the convergence of digitalization and advanced in-store technologies can transform them into effective media companies, leveraging customer traffic both online and in flagship stores.

Since its inception in 1928, IADS' purpose has been to coordinate information between department stores worldwide and research their activities to address their many challenges. Every year, the IADS produces a White Paper on a specific topic relevant to the industry. The 2020 edition reviewed how department stores managed the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, digital transformation and how it impacts organizations was explored, and in 2022 the focus was centred around CSR and ESG. The latest 2023 edition is dedicated to the hot topic of retail media which evolved significantly between 2022 and 2024.

The 2023 White Paper aims to identify where the retail media market stands, spell out the opportunities (and potential traps) for department stores, as well as suggest a few routes of reflection for their CEOs to prepare their organizations

for such a shift. Finally, since retail media is seen as a way to generate incremental, high-margin revenue, the White Paper helps to understand the cost of such new revenue, not only in financial terms but also in terms of people, organizations and needed adaptations.

Retail media is less of a revolution than a reinvention

Retail has never been a stranger to advertising. It started as early as the 19th century with the likes of Sears, Printemps, Jelmoli and Harrods issuing catalogues encouraging brands to advertise. While this helped sales and contributed to brand recognition, both at the retailer and product level, it also generated a new stream of revenue, coinciding with the development of the modern advertising industry, which evolved from selling ad spaces to offering complete brand solutions. This shift enabled department stores to forge new relationships with brands, selling them opportunities to stand out through trade marketing cooperation (B2B2C). The 21st century simply changed the advertising landscape, from a physical form (newspapers, catalogues, stores) to a numerical one (banners, emails, social media).

However, the eternal challenge in advertising, from the advertiser's point of view (the brand), has always been to make advertising effective, profitable, and measurable. Top-of-the-funnel strategies (national advertising) are difficult to evaluate in terms of ROI, while bottom-of-the-funnel ones (trade marketing) are difficult to scale at a national level. To cope with the lack of visibility of ROI in the upper funnel, brands were sold access to readers or watchers profiled according to an ideal target, a profiling made possible thanks to the navigation history knowledge acquired via tracking (cookies). However, the market is now much harder to navigate, as costs of advertising online have been on the rise for the past few years, and third-party cookies are disappearing in the wake of a stronger concern about personal data.

This is why retail media networks (RMNs) are a solution rather than a revolution: they are a collection of advertising and promotional tools owned by a retailer, using first-party data to target shoppers and prospects. As such, they offer a significant opportunity for revenue generation without cannibalizing traditional trade marketing activities.

From an opportunity…

While initially FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) retailers played a central role in the development of RMNs for structural reasons - the leading company being Amazon, where retail media generated a revenue of $31.2bn in 2021 (and should reach $45bn in 2023) -, retail media is no longer exclusive to them. Specialty retailers and other retail verticals are also developing their own RMNs to capture a portion of this appetizing market.

US-based Kroger utilizes its loyalty and POS transaction data to create targeted advertising and measurement tools. This allows for precise campaign planning, personalization, and post-campaign tracking, offering advertisers detailed insights into customer segments and sales uplift. RMNs have shifted the narrative from trade marketing being a "bottom-of-the-funnel" medium to a strategic "top-of-the-funnel" medium, attracting larger marketing budgets and making physical stores valuable again. They provide incremental revenue, which is particularly appealing in the context of shrinking margins in brick-and-mortar and e-commerce channels.

The landscape of RMNs is dynamic and geographically diverse, with a significant number of players in the US and competitive markets like France, where alliances, such as Unlimitail, allow national retailers to pool resources and therefore achieve a mutualized scale effect comparable to what is available in the US.

…to a solution for brick & mortar flagships

The context matters: despite the growth of e-commerce, 85% of retail sales in the U.S. still occur in physical stores. RMNs enable brands to target customers throughout their entire shopping journey, including in-store interactions. This has led to a renewed interest in physical stores as strategic assets for advertising. Retailers are finding innovative ways to incorporate advertising into the in-store experience, such as digital screens and in-store radio stations. These technologies transform stores from mere points of sale to influential advertising platforms.

For that reason, department stores have the potential to offer unique advertising possibilities by leveraging their significant online and offline footfall. The digitization of stores and the capability to sell first-party information allows for innovative onsite media propositions. As such, their flagship stores are therefore seen today as major untapped channels for advertising. They offer detailed geo-localized data that can inform brands about shopper behaviour in specific areas. This granularity of data is key for advertisers to optimize their marketing and product strategies. Retail media networks enable brands to reach customers close to the point of purchase, making physical stores an integral part of advertising strategies. In that perspective, retailers can use foot traffic data to create hyper-local segmentations and improve advertising efficiency in local markets.

But to successfully transition into a new mass media, department stores need to differentiate their RMN products, address organizational challenges, form strategic partnerships, define new standards, and make informed technology choices.

Are we about to see the emergence of new media companies?

RMNs mark a paradigm shift in retail advertising, offering precise, data-driven advertising opportunities both inside and outside retailers' own media channels. With projections indicating that RMNs could become a $100+ billion market by 2028, major retailers across various categories are launching their own networks to tap into the burgeoning demand for targeted and measurable advertising.

For them, RMNs present an opportunity to generate new, high-margin revenue streams that can compete with established advertising channels. The integration of brick-and-mortar stores into omnichannel RMN strategies, utilizing location intelligence and digital targeting, further expands the scope and efficacy of these networks.

Read the full press release below:

IADS PRESS RELEASE: IADS White Paper 2023

Access the White Paper below:

Click here to view the Table of Contents

IADS White Paper - Retail media and department stores: an opportunity, or a lifeline?

The Financial Times has written an article based on IADS findings on private labels. The article reports IADS' findings that the private label business has accounted for 16% of total member turnover of the IADS in 2022, compared to 9% in 2019.

Financial Times article 

IADS press release - Private Labels 

Fashion Network has written an article based on IADS' press release reporting changes seen in men's fashion styles in department stores. The article details key findings, trends and interesting brands in the Menswear fashion category, spotted by IADS partner, NellyRodi.

Fashion network article - english version

fashion network Article - French Version

IADS press release - menswear

Fashion United has written an article referencing IADS' press release reporting the changes of the Menswear category in Department stores. The article details key findings, trends and interesting brands in the menswear category, spotted by IADS partners, The Style Pulse and NellyRodi.

Fashion United Article 

IADS press release - Menswear

TextilWirtschaft highlights IADS' announcement of Seidensticker as a must-have fashion brand in the menswear category. The article details the up-and-coming Menswear brand Seidensticker and its importance in the fashion retail industry, spotted by IADS partner, NellyRodi.

TextilWirtschaft Article

IADS press release - Menswear

Fashion United has written an article based on IADS' press release reporting the results of its Menswear in Department stores meeting. The article details key findings, trends and interesting brands in the menswear category, spotted by IADS partners, The Style Pulse and NellyRodi.

Read the article below:

fashion United Article 

IADS press release - menswear

**Booming and blurry: if menswear remains a steady category, it is adapting to changing customers' tastes and lifestyles, but also to their price concerns.

In a difficult worldwide context, wary male customers have become price-sensitive and spend less. However, their appetite for fashion remains stable and shows a twist from casualwear (the driving force of the business) to semi-formal wear, as many companies ask employees to return to the office. Now that they also come back to stores, department stores' focus is also on generating growth in e-commerce, which in turn raises the question of operational profitability.**

Overall, the men's fashion category turnover share was stable in the past exercise at 16% of the total business on average for IADS members. In terms of price points, year-to-year, while entry-level and luxury sales shares remained stable at respectively 18% and 10% of sales, the premium segment grew at the expense of the high-street category.

Two parallel trends explain this shift:

▪ The return to the office, implying adequate attire, but with a rejuvenated and modernized touch,

▪ The need to spend more as such products are more complex, therefore more expensive, than casualwear, but without entering the luxury territory, due to economic concerns and spending capabilities.

It is interesting to note in this context that department stores remained primarily purveyors of accessible and inspiring fashion: the high street/mid-range price bracket was the most important with 45% of sales, followed by the premium segment, with 25% of sales and growing.

Casualwear meets office wear and elegance: an increasingly fluid category

The Style Pulse, an IADS partner, explained to department stores' buying teams their conclusions based on their digital B2B platform usages, and how menswear categories continue blurring: customers are no longer looking for separate offers in suits, casualwear, and sportswear, but are wearing all three at the same time. Mix this need with the return of office wear and social functions, and the cocktail becomes complex:

▪ Elegance is back, sustained by the "quiet luxury" trend and the appearance of new generation tailoring ideas.

▪ Customers demand relaxed styles that can be worn on every occasion, from the office to evenings out,

▪ Fluidity has really taken ground, with a feminine touch added to utilitarian and technical wardrobes.

Consequently, as men's fashion is no longer a collage of separate and very distinct segments, brands are not categorized and confined to specific stylistic boxes either. The days of "one brand is equal to one style" are gone.

Nevertheless, casualwear is still the force driving the business with a 56% share on average, followed by office wear (24%), showing people are increasingly back to the office. After significant growth in 2021 due to events resuming after Covid, occasion wear decreased to 5% in 2022. Finally, and this also shows how fluid the category has become, athleisure grew to 15% of the total business, a dynamic segment which would have remained solely classified in sports departments a few years ago.

As fashion authorities, the department stores' top-of-mind priority remains the product and brand mix

Nelly Rodi, a partner of the IADS, presented its exclusive scouting of up-and-coming brands made specifically for the Association's members:

• Must-have brands: Ami, A.P.C., Carhartt WIP, Arte, Nudie Jeans, Les Deux, Isabel Marant, Seidensticker.

• Brands making a comeback: Gant, Fursac, HS05, Lacoste, Aigle.

• Rising brands: ERL, Aries, S.S.Daley, Bode, Eleventy, Revolution, Thisisneverthat, De Bonne Facture, Drôle de Monsieur.

• Hidden gems: Cherry, Ouest Paris, Manastash, Norwegian Rain, Baziszt.

Pop-up stores and capsules remain an extremely powerful way to animate the product and brand offer, as illustrated with the Lacoste x Netflix capsule and Calvin Klein swimwear pop-up at Manor, Disney x Givenchy capsule andMC2 St Barth pop-up at El Corte Inglés, Jacquemus' store takeover and Café du Cycliste pop-up at Galeries Lafayette, Boss x Looney Tunes and Agnès b x New Era collaborations at Sogo or Les Deux pop-up at Magasin du Nord, to name a few.

Going beyond the retail floor animations, department stores also adopt tailor-made strategies to lure in specific customers according to their local trends: for instance, while Boyner is focusing on including more sustainable and

eco-friendly products, El Palacio de Hierro is simultaneously working on the development of streetwear, the repositioning of formalwear and the relaunch of its made-to-measure program, and The Mall Group mixes local brands and Instagram labels.

Challenges ahead: e-commerce, inflation and inventory hurdles

With life fully back to normal, customers are back in stores and the share of e-commerce in the category is no longer increasing, remaining stable at 17%. To keep this business dynamic, department stores launched new services such as Boyner with Boyner Now, a 90-minute delivery service which allows customers to order alternative sizes and try the items while the delivery person waits at the door for their decision. Thanks to a new distribution centre, Magasin du Nord offers faster deliveries and more BOPIS services. On their side, El Palacio de Hierro and El Corte Inglés significantly grow their online product offer.

All these initiatives raise the question of making such operations profitable in the current cost context: inflation is a reality for all. In all markets, customers are looking for bargains and cheaper alternatives. For some retailers, the purchasing decision is getting more complex, with fewer units per transaction (UPT) and a smaller average basket. As a consequence of inflation and slower sales in some cases, department stores are facing issues when it comes to the level of inventory and end-of-season stocks.

While casualwear remains the driving force of the category, workwear is making a comeback with people returning to work. Overall, Men's Fashion contours are less precise with casualwear and sportswear mixed with more formal attire. Going beyond products and despite having different projects, e-commerce is a priority for all. Also, department stores are facing a challenge relating to the consequences of inflation which are affecting consumers' shopping purchasing power and habits as well as causing inventory issues.

Read the full press release below:

IADS PRESS RELEASE: Men's Fashion

Read the full press release, in French, below:

IADS - Communiqué de presse - Le prêt-à-porter masculin

Luxus Plus highlights IADS' announcement of Ms Kamshim Lau as the first female President of the Association. in 95 years, during its General Meeting in London, succeeding Holger Blecker. The article details her incredible former contributions to the Association as Vice President and her roles in the Executive Committee of the Hong Kong Retail Management Association (HKRMA) and the Retail and Tourism Committee of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce.

Read the article below:

Luxus Plus Article

IADS press release -New President, Ms Kamshim Lau

Fashion United echoes IADS' announcement of Ms Kamshim Lau as the first female President of the Association. in 95 years, during its General Meeting in London, succeeding Holger Blecker. The article details her expertise and her future role in the Association and it also mentions the addition of two new members, Boyner (Turkey) and the Chalhoub group (United Arab Emirates).

Read the article below:

Fashion United Article 

IADS press release -New President, Ms Kamshim Lau

LSA echoes IADS' announcement of Ms Kamshim Lau as the first female President of the Association. in 95 years, during its General Meeting in London, succeeding Holger Blecker. The article details her expertise and her future role in the Association and it also mentions the addition of two new members, Boyner (Turkey) and the Chalhoub group (United Arab Emirates).

Read the article below:

LSA Article 

IADS press release -New President, Ms Kamshim Lau

The IADS contributed to the WRC Annual Report 2023 with an article about the significance of store windows in the digital age, along with a special report on Christmas windows in department stores.

Read the article below:

IADS contributes to WRC Annual Report 2023

Fashion Network echoes IADS' announcement of Ms Kamshim Lau as the first female President of the Association. in 95 years, during its General Meeting in London, succeeding Holger Blecker. The article details her expertise and her future role in the Association and it also mentions the addition of two new members, Boyner (Turkey) and the Chalhoub group (United Arab Emirates).

Read the article below:

fashion network Article - French Version

IADS press release -New President, Ms Kamshim Lau

WWD echoes IADS' announcement of Ms Kamshim Lau as the first female President of the Association. in 95 years, during its General Meeting in London, succeeding Holger Blecker. The article details her expertise and her future role in the Association and it also mentions the addition of two new members, Boyner (Turkey) and the Chalhoub group (United Arab Emirates).

Read the article below:

WWD Article 

IADS press release -New President, Ms Kamshim Lau

**The members of the International Association of Department Stores elected Ms Kamshim Lau (Lifestyle International) as their first female president in 95 years of IADS' existence.

During the 64th General Assembly of the International Association of Department Stores (IADS) held in London on November 8, 2023, the IADS members elected their Executive Committee for the new term, including their first female president since the inception of the Association in 1928.**

Ms Kamshim Lau, Executive Director of Lifestyle International Holdings Limited (which operates SOGO department store in Hong Kong, HKSAR), was unanimously appointed President of the Association during its last General Assembly in November 2023. Lifestyle International Holdings Limited has been a member of the IADS since 2013 and this election marked its 10th year of membership.

Ms Lau, 36, has held the position of Executive Director at Lifestyle International Holdings Limited since 2016. Ms Lau has served as Vice-President of the IADS for two consecutive terms, demonstrating her strong partnership with Mr Holger Blecker, the CEO of Breuninger GmbH & Co (Germany) and the exiting President of the IADS. She is also a member of the Executive Committee of the Hong Kong Retail Management Association (HKRMA) and a member of the Retail & Tourism Committee within the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce. Ms. Lau holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from King's College London and a Master of Arts degree from Columbia University in New York.

This is the first time that a representative from Lifestyle International Holdings Limited is appointed President, and the second time that an Asian IADS member has held this position, after Mr Ji Xiao'an, the chairman of the board of the Beijing Hualian Group (which operates SKP department stores in China), who took the leadership role from 2015 to 2017.

IADS members have also appointed Mr Blecker a member of the Executive Committee, alongside Mr Juan Carlos Escribano, CEO of El Palacio de Hierro (Mexico), Mr Nicolas Houzé, CEO of Galeries Lafayette (France), and Mr Peter King, Chairman of Magasin du Nord (Denmark). Together, they will work closely with Ms Lau in leading the strategic positioning of the IADS as an operational tool and an exclusive service for its retail members.

This drive towards a more granular role of the Association as a working resource for its members, in line with its founding principles back in 1928, has already started in the past 3 years, with a series of new initiatives aiming at consolidating its hybrid role.

In addition to the organisation of a series of exchange meetings at all levels, from CEOs to C-suite, buyers and merchandisers, the Association now offers an array of tools developed with its partners, NellyRodi in trends identification, The Style Pulse in identifying new brands, Retail Hub in tech sourcing and RH-ISAC in cyber defence, all aiming to provide extra resources to its members. The Association also operates the IADS Academy, a 9-month-long training program for its members' talent in a unique and compelling manner. Finally, the IADS also directly tackles its members' questions on an individual basis by acting as a 100% dedicated informational hub.

This new direction taken by the Association has proved to be the right one: the IADS welcomed Boyner (Turkey) and Chalhoub Group (UAE) as new members in June and September 2023, respectively. The appointment of its first female president in 95 years is another testament to the IADS members' agility and commitment to addressing the most pressing challenges in retail by collaborating and relying on the best talents available.

Ms Lau's role will be to challenge even more the Association in a highly energetic context. Together with the renewed Executive Committee, her vision and expertise will allow the Association to remain the only expert department store body in the world, a role that IADS has played continuously since 1928.

Read the full press release below:

IADS PRESS RELEASE: IADS members elected Ms Kamshim Lau as the new president

Read the full press release, in French, below:

IADS - Communiqué de presse - Kamshim Lau nouvelle president

Fashion Network has written an article based on IADS' press release reporting the results of its Sportswear in Department stores meeting. The article details key findings, trends and interesting brands in the sportswear category, spotted by IADS partner, NellyRodi.

Read the article below:

fashion network Article - French Version

IADS press release - sportswear

**Sportwear: as Covid induced a new-found interest in sports practice among many customer demographics, the category thrives in department stores. To differentiate from specialized competition, they transform themselves into dedicated hubs for fans.

Competition in the sportswear category is intense for department stores. This is partly due to the level of equipment among customers, the price pressure coming from other types of retailers, but more significantly because of the limited number of relevant brands available on the market. Larger brands leverage their size to go direct to customers, and the most powerful dictate their conditions. Despite these challenges, the category shows dynamism in department stores thanks to the exploration of new categories and practices.**

The post-Covid period, and life returning to normal, significantly impacted the market by restructuring the product segment breakdown, a phenomenon fuelled by the fact that customers needed less restocking in 2022 after massively buying equipment during lockdowns:

-    Hybrid products, used both for sports practice and in daily life, decreased from a 50% share of the business to a mere 22%.

-    Streetwear, a segment increasingly popular which can be worn in front of a screen but also in the office, increased its share from 23% to 45% of the total business.

-    Technical products, only used for sports practice, grew from 20% to 31% in 2022 thanks to a new-found interest in outdoor activities overall.

By adding carefully curated equipment for new disciplines as well as new brands and activations, department stores were able to generate growth by building their credibility in the segment. In 2022 the sportswear share out of department stores' total turnover was 6% on average, growing +14% when compared to 2021. The growth was mainly observed in store, as e-commerce sportswear share of business decreased on average by -6% among IADS members.

Making choices: department stores opt out of competition based on low prices

Consequent to inflation, e-tailers offer high discounts that department stores don't match. A price war is raging in some markets where it is easy to find running shoes with a -30% discount with retailers offloading their excess stocks. Besides, e-tailers have expanded product catalogues, sometimes making department stores' smaller offer less relevant. Finally, fashion and fast-fashion pure players and brands are more aggressively penetrating the sports market. DTC brands are also developing their own retail footprint, creating additional competition.

For these reasons, department stores have opted for a strategy involving curation and a focus on some categories.

To go beyond a limited brand portfolio, department stores combine events and new brands

Overall, members rely on a small number of major brands. Depending on the market, the best ones are Adidas, Nike, The North Face, Under Armour, Puma, On, New Balance, Asics and Lululemon. As a result, the category requires finding and onboarding additional brands to secure and leverage the business.

From this perspective, IADS partner NellyRodi spotted 50 interesting brands to follow:

•    Outdoor (technical brands made for the outside and resistant to extreme conditions): Arc'teryx, Rains, Tropicfeel, Ecoalf, Finisterre, Roa Hiking, Volleback, Aether Apparel, CMF Outdoor Garments, Flotte, Hoalen, Alk Phenix, Spoonyard, Matek.

•    Activewear (casual and comfortable clothing specifically designed for sports practice): Alo Yoga, Rapha, Girlfriend Collective, Yoga Democracy, Planet Nusa, Unrun, Chlore, Cardo Paris, Opoi, Hercule Studio.

•    Athleisure (versatile sportswear combining function and fashion to wear daily in non-sport activities): Pangaia, Outdoor Voices, Vaara, Ganni Sport, AA Spectrum, Ninepine, Sporty & Rich, Madhappy, The Upside, Jonsen Island, Les Tien, 7 Days Active, Café du Cycliste, Colorful Standard, Cariuma.

•    'Tech-ipment' (new objects and innovative products that are useful to sports practice): **Starck x Baliston, Suunto, Cowboy.

•    Footwear: Eytys, Rombaut, Autry, Saye, Salomon.**

•    Food supplements: Feed, Poppi, Food Spring.

To make sure customers notice and are willing to try new products, brand activations are key, with pop-up stores at the top of the list. Initiatives such as Adidas soccer products shown prior to the World Cup and On Running shoes for instance show significant results. With cycling being increasingly popular, pop-up stores with Rose bikes and Mate bikes are also of interest.

Events and services come as a great complement to pop-up activations: Beco organises a successful fitness fest twice a year, El Corte Inglés uses influencers and social media to make brand collaborations more powerful, while El Palacio de Hierro organises happenings, cycling or yoga classes with experts. Last month, Boyner conducted their Dynamic Fest festival, a never-seen-before series of days of physical activities in a 2-hectare park.

Into the wild: outdoor practices win, including jogging, cycling and paddle

Activewear and sneakers remain hero categories in Sportswear. But besides increasing their footwear business, department stores are looking into new segments for growth. Outdoor sports are favoured: soccer, basketball, cycling, jogging and paddling are among the ones with great potential. There is a consensus on the idea of picking a few disciplines instead of being generalists. This strategic move requires building true credibility to be able to compete with specialist retailers and e-tailers: having expert sales associates in the chosen disciplines and making sure to offer head-to-toe equipment will be the winning ingredients to create a community of active customers.

Also, the Wellness category comes as an interesting complement to the Sportswear one. With its all-encompassing contours, Wellness could support the category as a unique way to link sports and beauty, and to generate additional business opportunities. In that regard, El Palacio de Hierro recently opened 1,872 sqm dedicated to wellness: it helps to develop different disciplines, brands and categories and is also a great way to bring additional experiences and services such as gym classes, a beauty bar and healthy restaurants. Pioneering in Wellness, Galeries Lafayette's 3,000 sqm Wellness Galerie gathers a gym studio, a fitness store, beauty counters and services, as well as a multi-brand store.

Despite the competition, the outlook on the future of the category is positive: in addition to activewear and footwear as key categories, the onboarding of new brands allows the Sportswear business to continue growing in department stores. Instead of having a generic approach to the category, adding new sports practice equipment helps department stores develop the business but requires building true credibility with a significant and relevant product offer, expert staff and enough surface to demonstrate products. Thanks to its all-encompassing contours, wellness will be a good support to sportswear.

Read the full press release below:

IADS PRESS RELEASE: Rise of Sports Retail

Read the full press release, in French, below:

IADS - Communiqué de presse - sportswear

What Just Happened Podcast by Christine Russo interviewed IADS' GM, Selvane Mohandas du Ménil, to evolution of department stores, and the role of technology, the challenges and opportunities department stores face in the ever-changing retail landscape. The episode is available to listen on YouTube, Apple Podcast and Spotify below.

Listen to the podcast on spotify here

listen to the podcast on youtube here

listen to the podcast on apple podcast here

Fashion Network has written an article based on IADS' press release reporting the results of its Cosmetics, Beauty and Wellness meeting. The article details key findings, trends and interesting brands in the cosmetics, beauty and wellness category, spotted by IADS partner, NellyRodi.

Read the article below:

Fashion network article - english version

fashion network Article - French Version

IADS press release - cosmetics, beauty and wellness

WWD has written an article based on IADS' press release reporting the results of its Cosmetics, Beauty and Wellness meeting. The article titled "Beauty Strategies Pivot in Department Stores, IADS Study Shows" reveals key findings, trends and interesting brands in the cosmetics, beauty and wellness category, spotted by IADS partner, NellyRodi.

Read the article below:

WWD Article

IADS press release - cosmetics, beauty and wellness

The feel-good factor: to thrive in an ultra-competitive market, department stores go beyond leveraging niche fragrances and make-up, and heavily invest in wellness, backed by revamped loyalty programs and social media on steroids.

The pandemic has radically transformed the beauty and cosmetics category, a historical pillar for department stores. Big brands went direct-to-customer and challenged their relationship with stores. In parallel, customers' expectations and tastes shifted, leading to a turnaround of the market, with big names being challenged and newcomers or niche brands taking the lead. To adapt, department stores adjusted their strategy and successfully invested in niche fragrances and new make-up brands. However, they also went beyond simple adjustments by entering a new market, wellness, to remain connected with customer demand.

The Cosmetics & Beauty business grew on average +1% from '21 to '22 for IADS members, to almost recover to its pre-pandemic level. But the fundamentals changed as Covid-19 shook the category in different ways:

After a nose-dive in 2020 and 2021 due to the various lockdowns cancelling the need for such products, Perfume and Make-up categories grew again in 2022, benefitting from life returning to normal, and contributed to the overall growth of the department,

The sanitary crisis fuelled a new customer obsession with self-care, favouring a new category which ramped up very rapidly: wellness-related products, which are now increasingly considered a standard part of the beauty offering in department stores,

Brands went direct during the pandemic, new names appeared, and speciality stores deployed aggressive commercial strategies, forcing department stores to review their options to keep their customers captive, through new services, dedicated loyalty programmes and new social media approaches.

Interestingly, these evolutions forced department stores to adapt their offer, but not their price structure: in '22, segmentation remained stable compared to '21, with luxury products representing 47% of the business, premium products 24% and prestige products 10%. The only notable evolution comes from the mass-market segment decreasing to 8% and benefiting the ultra-accessible business (7%), which had already been increasing before inflation hit.

Good-looking and smelling nice: niche fragrance brands help differentiate while makeup makes a comeback

Good-looking and smelling nice: niche fragrance brands help differentiate while makeup makes a comeback

Perfume is by far the first category for department stores, with an average of 36% of the category business. Sales are supported by niche fragrances, which are increasingly attractive to customers. IADS members mentioned brands such as Creed, Maison Francis Kurkdjian, Jo Malone, Byredo, By Kilian, Les Eaux Primordiales, Montale, Ex Nihilo, Mancera or Le Labo, as true success stories. El Palacio de Hierro and Breuninger in particular are pursuing a strategy which aims to become leaders and recognized experts in Mexico and Germany respectively.

Accounting for 20% of the business in 2022, the Makeup category made a comeback with brands such as Mac back in full force. While it has a long way to recover to 2019 levels after Covid slowed down sales, in-store events represent great opportunities to redevelop the business, on top of sourcing and adding exclusive, new and trendy brands. This is why NellyRodi, a partner of the IADS, presented its exclusive scouting of up-and-coming brands made specifically for the Association's members:

Skincare: Topicals, Dieux, Cosmoss, Haeckels, Earth Library, Herbar,

Makeup: Stryx, Isamay Beauty, Youthforia, Eclo Beauty, 19/99,

Hair care: Fur, Oway, La Bonne Brosse, Make My Mask, Everist,

Perfume: Non Fiction, The Nue Co, Costa Brazil, Les Eaux Primordiales, Aer,

Other categories: V Vardis, Sentara Holistic, Miyé, Geske.

Wellness, supported by services and 'green' beauty, is appealing to all consumer groups

The skincare category represented on average 34% of the business in '20-'22 and was fuelled by demand for wellness-related and 'green' (or 'clean') beauty products. Many department stores reacted quickly with new spaces and services:

Galeries Lafayette opened their "Wellness Galerie", a world premiere, with the clear ambition to take the lead and make the trend accessible to a large portion of consumers. By combining a gym studio, fitness products, beauty and health-related services, with a care-oriented beauty store (heavily leaning towards 'green' beauty), the new space proved successful with all customer profiles, including GenZ and male customers.

El Palacio de Hierro launched "Origen", a new multi-brand space dedicated to wellness and 'green' beauty. Here also, there is no specific customer profile attached to such spaces which cater to different consumer groups and position the retailer as an expert in the category.

Manor addresses such trends and demand for clean products by giving them more visibility in-store and online, thanks to dedicated events, podiums, and beauty advisor support.

So far, Sogo in Hong Kong has relied on existing products. But their new Kai Tak store (opening end of 2023) targets younger customers, and they will start allocating space to wellness and 'green' brands.

Whether they are run by brands or directly, beauty services are performing well and tend to expand in all department stores. At Manor, Clinique Matignon (a local partner offering peelings, laser treatments…) offers light procedures and the business is growing. At El Corte Inglés and Sogo, beauty cabins are managed by stores and 'rented' by brands with excellent performance. Nails, brow and lash extension services provided by partners are doing great at Manor and Galeries Lafayette. Initiatives such as temporary or permanent tattoo parlours worked their magic in terms of traffic at Manor and El Palacio de Hierro.

Muscling the product offer should not be overlooked when it comes to growing the Wellness business:

Sexual wellness represents a promising category at Galeries Lafayette with brands like Womanizer and My Lubie, which are slated to be expanded in several stores. Manor is considering sexual wellness as well.

'Tech beauty' should rapidly develop in the future. At El Palacio de Hierro, Galeries Lafayette and El Corte Inglès, brands such as Foreo, Unicskin and Tripollar are working well, especially LED masks. Such products being technical, events demonstrating products truly generate sales.

Maximizing the business thanks to dedicated loyalty programmes and social media accounts

Building a captive customer base is critical in the beauty market. To compete with retailers such as Sephora, developing a loyalty programme dedicated to beauty (a sort of 'beauty club') could make a difference. Those that already have a beauty-specific loyalty programme note that customers are buying way more than the regular ones.

Starting beauty-dedicated social media accounts also proved to be an efficient strategy. El Palacio de Hierro has an Instagram account dedicated to beauty: posts on this account truly support sales and brands are interested in partnerships. Also, TikTok has become a must-have: Manor and Galeries Lafayette recently launched their accounts and noted that posts about beauty draw a significant number of customers and increase sales.

Post-Covid consumer aspirations are an opportunity for the Cosmetics, Beauty & Wellness business. Perfume and Makeup benefit from life getting back to normal, and the Covid-induced 'Care' trend remains strong, especially with wellness supported by new services and the rise of 'green' beauty. To further differentiate, department stores use dedicated loyalty programmes and social media as additional ways to consolidate captive customer bases.

Read the full press release below:

IADS PRESS RELEASE: In Beauty, department stores go full speed in Wellness, Niche and Loyalty programs

Read the full press release, in French, below:

IADS - Communiqué de Presse - Cosmétiques & Beauté

Chalhoub Group, the partner and creator of luxury experiences in the Middle East, joins the International Association of Department Stores.

A major regional luxury player with a global reach thanks to its relationship with international luxury brands, Chalhoub Group officially joins IADS' leading global department stores network. The membership will be formalized during the upcoming 64th Association General Assembly, to be held in Istanbul on November 8th, 2023.

For over 65 years, Chalhoub Group has remained committed to building successful brands while shaping the Middle East luxury retail market. From creating exclusive brands and experiences for customers at physical retail environments and online, to partnering with and curating over 300 global brands, the Group has continued to offer customers the ultimate retail experience through its luxury offerings across the beauty and fashion segments.

In its endeavour to excel as a hybrid retailer across the Middle East, Chalhoub Group is also characterized by its strategic business models designed to strengthen brand partnerships – from franchising to joint-ventures. Chalhoub Group has also developed its own retail brands, such as Tanagra for luxury lifestyle and art de vivre, FACES, the leading beauty omni-retailer, Level Shoes, a globally recognised retail concept and destination dedicated to the world of designer shoes & accessories, and Tryano, a concept department store for luxury, fashion, and beauty brands in the Middle East. With its robust e-commerce and omnichannel capabilities, Chalhoub Group also continues to strengthen its service efficiency and convenience to serve 5.1 million customers each year across more than 680 retail stores and 60 e-commerce websites.

Customer-centricity represents an integral aspect of Chalhoub Group's DNA, addressing the needs of over 2.5 million loyal members to date through its MUSE Loyalty Programme. MUSE enhances the customer experience through a fully controlled and personalised customer journey, ultimately enhancing speed, efficiency, and customer satisfaction, all with sustainability in mind.

The Group's in-depth knowledge and expertise of the Middle East market and consumer behaviours – demonstrated through its sector reports, including the recent Decoding the Beauty Consumer in the GCC, along with its extensive omnichannel capabilities, will fuel the Association members' conversations as department stores from across the globe come together in efforts to fast-pace their innovative solutions for customers worldwide.

Mr Holger Blecker, CEO of Breuninger (Germany) and President of the IADS, said: "It is my great pleasure to announce that the Chalhoub Group, for over six decades creator of luxury, beauty and fashion experiences in the Middle East, will be joining us in the International Association of Department Stores (IADS). As we combine our strengths and shared vision, our goal is to create a powerful network that will push the future of retail and enhance the global shopping experience".

Ms Kamshim Lau, Executive Director of Lifestyle International (Hong Kong SAR) and Vice-President of the IADS, said: "We are delighted to have Chalhoub Group as a new member of the IADS family. With their exceptional expertise in the luxury retail sector, Chalhoub Group will undoubtedly bring valuable insights and contribute to our collective mission of driving innovation and excellence in the global department store landscape".

Mr David Vercruysse, President Fashion, Beauty and Homeware at Chalhoub Group, said: "We are proud to be an official member of the IADS. This strategic partnership marks a significant milestone for the Group, as we come together with other leading retailers from across the globe who share our commitment to delivering exceptional experiences to our customers. We look forward to our fruitful partnership with IADS' members as we share our insights and expertise in all aspects of this dynamic industry and contribute to the growth and innovation of the global retail landscape."

By joining the Association, Chalhoub will contribute to the fruitful exchanges taking place between leading department stores in the world within the framework offered by IADS, where members come together to bring strategic and concrete answers to questions ranging from logistics to e-commerce profitability, omnichannel excellence, private label profitability, relationships with international brands and the evolution of customer expectations.

About Chalhoub Group

For over six decades, Chalhoub Group has been a partner and creator of luxury experiences in the Middle East. The Group, in its endeavour to excel as a hybrid retailer, has reinforced its distribution and marketing services with a portfolio of eight owned brands and over 300 international brands in the luxury, beauty, fashion, and art de vivre categories. More recently, the Group expanded its expertise into new categories of luxury watches, jewellery, and eyewear.

Every step at Chalhoub Group is taken with the customer at heart. Be it by constantly reinventing itself or focusing on innovation to provide luxury experiences at over 750+ experiential retail stores, online and through mobile apps, each touch point leads to delighting the customer.

Today, Chalhoub Group stands for 14,000 skilled and talented professionals across seven countries, whose cohesive efforts have resulted in the Group being ranked third in the Middle East and first in Saudi Arabia as A Great Place to Work®.

To keep the innovation journey going, the Group has set up "The Greenhouse", which is not just an innovation hub, but also an incubator space and accelerator for start-ups and small businesses in the region and internationally. This is just one of the several initiatives taken by the Group to reinvent itself, catalysed by forward thinking and future proofing. The Group has also been embedding sustainability at the core of its business strategy with a clear commitment towards people, partners and the planet, and by being a member of the United Nations Global Compact Community and signatory of the Women's Empowerment Principles.

For more information : www.chalhoubgroup.com, @ChalhoubGroup

Press Contact : Lea Maalouf, Head of Media Relations and Public Affairs, Lea.Maalouf@chalhoub.com, + 971 54 716 7770

Read the full press release below:

IADS PRESS RELEASE: Chalhoub group joins the iads

Read the full press release, in French, below:

IADS - communiqué de presse: le groupe chalhoub rejoint l'iads

**Driving change: EU's accelerating sustainability regulations echo IADS White Paper's call for putting theory into action to create new business opportunities and get ahead of the curve.

Regulations such as Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), EU Deforestation-Free Regulation (EURD), and the EU Green Claims Directive are changing the way that retailers foundationally operate, raising a lot of uncertainty but equally creating potentially profitable opportunities. This is why now is the time for retailers to move from theory to action and try out new ideas. As these European regulations are coming hard and fast and should be a foretaste of what will come to the rest of the world, it is best to catch the wave early to get ahead of regulations than to struggle to keep up, especially not knowing what next big disrupter is coming.**

Knowing that fashion and retail businesses are in the midst of a functional change driven by regulation, IADS' latest White Paper was about 'Reinventing department stores through sustainability'. This exclusive study unveils how the definition of sustainability across stakeholders in retail remains vague and ill-defined and how government involvement has shifted the focus from direct carbon impacts and green energy (Scope 1 and 2 Greenhouse Gas emissions) to indirect emissions (Scope 3 Greenhouse Gas emission).

Several themes developed in the IADS White Paper were confirmed during a recent IADS member meeting from June 2023 pulling together Sustainability Directors, which allowed to identify a series of key takeaways useful for any retailer willing to move forward.

Of all stakeholders, the C-Suite is best placed to solve sustainability's financial conundrum

Involving the C-Suite means that there needs to be some kind of link to profitability and company performance, if not simply imposed by regulations. A good strategy to get the C-suite involved is through financing agreements which grant businesses low-interest loans to enable them to invest in energy efficiency and digital transformation. IADS members that have already taken advantage of this financing option have reported that it is a great way to optimize the business and create more efficient operations that will in turn make the business more sustainable

Retailers are taking on responsibility for Scope 3 emission tracking without being properly equipped

Retailers are put in the middle of consumer demand and product supply; therefore, they are taking on a lot of the responsibility from regulators as to how consumers purchase, the materials used in the makeup of products, and the working conditions of labourers. IADS members shared that Scope 3 tracking initiatives such as double materiality assessments, which have been enforced by recent regulations, are hard to comply with as retailers are having to rely on various data sources and need to piece together information from a number of tools and providers. Such methods are not sustainable for long-term business goals and regulatory expectations.

Current traceability tools are not mature enough to meet regulatory requirements

Traceability goes hand-in-hand with Scope 3 emissions tracking, but it has proven difficult to follow. Advanced technology such as blockchain and various traceability startups are starting to entice retailers to adopt such new practices as they promise to address many challenges a retailer faces. But there is a lot of hesitation around pulling the trigger on these solutions as there is no clear leader in the market and the overall process still relies heavily on data inputs from humans which leaves room for error or incomplete fields. This is why there has not been mass adoption of a given solution among department stores for the time being.

Getting ahead of regulation is the key to success

As retailers start to anticipate the upcoming impacts of regulations, it is important for them to start acting now, even before it is mandatory. IADS members that already started to act on new reporting standards have found that they have more time to ask questions and lead the conversation on how such exercises will be achieved. One way they have been successful has been to work directly with consulting firms and audit partners that already know their business and have completed other types of regulatory activities (like financial reporting) in the past.

Communication is important to consumers and greenwashing should be carefully avoided

When it comes to sharing sustainability efforts with consumers, it is not simple: consumers begin to feel exhausted from over-communication and greenwashing must be avoided at all costs. A number of IADS members have turned to conducting surveys to better understand what their customers expect and understand from sustainability labels and communications that are being placed online and in stores. What they have learned is that just because a customer is buying a product that is labelled sustainable, doesn't mean that their motivation for purchasing the item was due to the fact that it is an item that is considered 'greener' than an alternative and maybe they purchased it for other reasons. This complicates the story even more for retailers and makes proper communication on sustainability initiatives even more important.

Sustainability goals and initiatives cannot be achieved alone

Groups such as the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC), Amfori BSCI, and EuroCommerce are setting the foundation to create standards within the entire supply chain so the proper information can be gathered, and uniform expectations can be defined. Such global standards will be the key to progress in the industry.

Sustainability leaders across global department stores are struggling with the same issues, and the biggest topic that needs to be addressed is how to follow Scope 3 emissions and make traceability tools standardized. At the moment there is not a single retailer or technology provider leading the pack and offering an all-encompassing solution that addresses all reporting requirements of new regulations. It will be interesting to watch but it will be important to note which retailer will be the influencer that sets the path for the rest of the industry. Collaboration and idea sharing among global players is the secret to advancement, making associations like the International Association of Department Stores a key piece of addressing the unknown in this changing landscape.

The IADS White Paper is available here.

Read the full press release below:

IADS PRESS RELEASE sustainability opportunities

Read the full press release, in French, below:

IADS - Communiqué de presse - RSE