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Quarter of all clothing bought in hypermarkets

Some 24% of clothing and other textile products are purchased in hyper and supermarkets. Or so says a study from the state textile business association Acotex. According to the report, 32.3% of clothing and textiles are purchased in specialised chains, 19.7% in shops selling multiple brands and 15.3% in outlet retailers. Only 9% of textile products are bought in department stores.

As for online purchases, Acotex says that they made up only 7% of business in 2016, although it is a sector that is expected to grow.

The appearance of large chains and with supermarkets now selling textile products at affordable prices –for example, Carrefour, Alcampo or Lidl– means that traditional small retailers have lost out. At the end of the 1990s, these shops accounted for 60% of clothing and textile product sales, until from around 2000 specialised chains and then outlet retailers made their appearance.

“It’s true that during the crisis both supermarkets and large chains, who sell lower quality and are self-service, without the added value we give, have increased their clientele a lot. Yet, buying in these establishments is very different from in specialised shops,” says Joan Carles Calbet, head of Comertia, an association of local family-based reference brands in Catalonia.

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