Tariffs, inflation, and value-oriented purchasing: it is in this context that the mid-market is establishing itself as a new driver for the fashion industry.

Lectra, a leading provider of Industry 4.0 solutions for the fashion, automotive, and furniture industries, analysed data from Retviews, its artificial intelligence-based solution specialising in competitive intelligence and automatic benchmarking, to identify the trends and pricing strategies that brands are implementing in the Fall/Winter 2025/2026 season to cope with an ever-changing macroeconomic scenario. 

“Brand strategies reflect market challenges. Today, product ranges are becoming more streamlined and collections are curated in a more intentional way. At the same time, discounting strategies are shifting: discount rates are decreasing, but promotional periods are becoming longer, as brands aim to preserve pricing power without losing momentum in a market marked by cautious consumer spending,” says Antonella Capelli, President EMEA at Lectra. “Leveraging advanced technologies to obtain and interpret current market insights is now essential for optimising strategies, ensuring consistency with consumer expectations, and, at the same time, guaranteeing solid commercial performance and efficient inventory management. At Lectra, our mission is to support brands in their digital transformation journey by providing tools and solutions that enable truly informed, data-driven decisions.”

Mid-market fashion brands are adopting premium strategies in FW25/26, with European prices rising up to 50 per cent YoY.
Accessories and handbags saw the sharpest gains, while denim and footwear posted moderate growth.
Brands are shifting towards lower but longer discount cycles to preserve pricing power amid tariffs, inflation, and cautious consumer spending.

The mid-market drives profits in fashion

In fashion, business models are undergoing a profound transformation. Mass-market players, which have always competed more directly with low-cost e-commerce giants, are facing increasing pressure due to rising costs and greater inventory risk. These factors, combined with consumers’ focus on value and product quality, mean that the fast-fashion model, characterised by very high volumes and vast assortments, has begun to show signs of slowing down.

It is therefore the mid-market that stands out as the most dynamic and growing segment, even surpassing luxury as a driver of value in the sector. To distinguish themselves from the traditional mass market, mid-market brands are also moving towards a more premium positioning, thanks to more refined designs, more carefully curated assortments, and more ambitious pricing strategies.

Inflation and the effect of tariffs in the “K-economy”

In the UK, consumer price inflation (CPI) reached 3.4% in December 2025¹, keeping shoppers cautious and price-sensitive as they plan discretionary spend.

On the other hand, tariffs introduced by the United States, with rates between 15% and 50%, have increased import costs, forcing brands to make selective price increases that risk further weakening demand. 

These dynamics mean that brands are faced with the so-called “K-economy,” a dichotomy in which high-income consumers continue to buy, even increasing their spending, while others reduce it. For brands, this translates into the need to review their pricing and promotional strategies to meet the needs of different consumer segments and, above all, the lower segments that represent the main consumer base for retail.

The premium trend continues for mass brands, with more moderate but longer-lasting discounts

The trend that began in 2025, which sees mass brands moving towards a premium identity, is confirmed. This is demonstrated by the arrival of former creative directors from luxury fashion houses in high-street brand teams, as well as collaborations with prestigious designers to create dedicated capsule collections.

These choices strengthen positioning while justifying higher price points: the Retviews study highlights how, compared to 2024, mid-market brands increased prices by +50% in Europe in 2025, even doubling them in the United States.

Promotional dynamics also confirm strategies aimed at protecting price integrity while maintaining attractiveness, with more moderate but longer-lasting discounts. In Europe, for example, in the period September-December 2025, average discount levels and the number of products with reduced prices were lower than in the same period in previous years.

Price trends by product category

For the Fall/Winter 2025/2026 season, the Retviews study shows a general increase in prices for both Europe and the United States. However, not all product categories have increased to the same extent:

• Denim (+9% in Europe, +20% in the United States)

From low-rise to bootcut styles, jeans have historically been a universal garment for all styles and genders. This year, their timeless appeal is proving resilient, with increases in both prices and assortments year-on-year.

• Winter footwear (+9% in Europe, +19% in the United States)

Footwear prices rose significantly in all markets. The main driving factor was growth in the mass market segment, particularly among design-led mid-market brands. This repositioning strengthened pricing power, especially in categories such as footwear, where brands are leaning into highervalue product mixes. The popularity of typical fall and winter styles (such as cowboy-style western boots) has further contributed to price increases, prompting many brands to raise their price lists to capitalize on demand.

• Coats and jackets (+11% in Europe, +13% in the United States)

A must-have for the Fall/Winter season, jackets are not only seeing price increases, but also a significant expansion in the range, with fur jackets, high-necked trench coats, and leather styles making a comeback in response to growing demand for versatile yet bold garments.

• Accessories and lucky charms (+15% in Europe, +16% in the United States)

While consumers continue to prefer timeless bags, charms offer a more accessible way to personalize their look, making this micro-category particularly dynamic. Thanks to their high perceived value relative to price, accessories favor moderate price increases, which consumers are more likely to accept. It is therefore not surprising that mass-market and mid-market brands are following the example of luxury brands, which have significantly expanded the presence of bag charms in their collections, with an increase of more than 50% year-on-year in the European market.

• Handbags (+33% in Europe, +38% in the United States)

Handbags are experiencing a real boom in the mass “mid” market, driven largely by the influence of social media, where luxury fashion houses dictate trends that are then reinterpreted in the collections of major brands. In this context, the category is experiencing significant growth, with an increase in assortment presence of +27% in Europe and +10% in the United States.

Methodological note: the percentage data refer to the periods between September 1 and December 1, 2025, and the same periods for previous years.

Note: The headline, insights, and image of this press release may have been refined by the Fibre2Fashion staff; the rest of the content remains unchanged.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (MS)

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After the European Union (EU) added Vietnam to the list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes following an Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) peer review on the exchange of information on tax rulings for the 2021-2023 period, Vietnam defended its tax transparency record.

Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Pham Thu Hang said that throughout the OECD’s peer review process, Vietnam actively incorporated feedback and recently updated many legal documents on taxation, finance and corporate governance, including the Law on Tax Administration, the Law on Enterprises, and Decree No. 168/2025/ND-CP on corporate management.

After the EU added Vietnam to the list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes following an OECD peer review on the exchange of information on tax rulings for the 2021-2023 period, Vietnam defended its tax transparency record.
Throughout the peer review process, Vietnam incorporated feedback and has updated many legal documents on taxation, finance and corporate governance, it said.

These have helped improve the compliance with international standards for transparency and information exchange, she was cited as saying by domestic media reports.

Vietnam is now formulating and implementing a national action plan to address recommendations from the OECD’s Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes. It is concurrently strengthening tax cooperation with international partners, including the EU, Hang added.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)