Children's clothing moved $1.8 billion in 2020 and accounted for 7.8% of the fashion market

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A pocos días de iniciar Colombiamoda+Colombiatex en su versión 2021, la industria y los empresarios se preparan para entrar con paso fuerte a este evento que promete impulsar la reactivación del sector, sin embargo, algunos segmentos, como el de moda infantil, llegan con ventaja.

Juan Fernando Loaiza, economic research specialist at Inexmoda highlighted that this particular category presented a more positive behavior compared to others in the basket such as costumes, shoes, accessories and services.

"last year was very complex for the Colombian fashion system, the size of the market fell 13.4% but the situation is not the same for all segments. Children's clothing presented an outstanding dynamic. Despite the pandemic, children continue to grow and spending continues, "Loaiza added.

Euromonitor International recorded that the children's clothing segment alone moved more than $1.8 billion, representing about 7.8% of the total Colombian fashion basket, which, according to the Inexmoda observatory, reached $22.8 billion last year.

The contrasts

En cuanto a marcas representativas, en el último quinquenio, entidades como Mall & Retail han evaluado el buen desempeño del sector y destacan que compañías como Offcorss, EPK, MIC y Baby Fresh pueden representar más de 30% de los ingresos de este mercado.

"the children's market in the first half of 2021 shows a very positive trend. Children continue to grow up and need clothes. Even for Offcorss it's one of the best-performing semesters in the last five years. Innovation and putting our customers at the centre of our operations has favored and differentiated us, "said Offcorss CEO Yanet Londoño.

Thanks to the good reception of the segment and which does not depend on seasonality for consumer spending, more and more players are coming into competition in both local and international trade. This is reflected, for example, in export performance, which at the end of May 2021 increased 12.8% versus 2020 by more than US $2 million.

"exports of children's clothing have been growing by about 13% to May of this year, hence the importance of accompanying companies in the main fashion fairs of this subsector in those markets, so that they have a better position, thanks to their quality and designs," said ProColombia President Flavia Santoro.

The entity's figures also show that the United States, the United Kingdom and Puerto Rico are the largest buyers of Colombian children's clothing, representing 59%; 17.7% and 66% of total exports in this category.

In addition to the fair to be held in Medellín from 27 to 29 July, ProColombia will accompany 14 Colombian brands of clothing and other baby products in their attendance at the Playtime fair, the first week of August in New York, one of the most representative encounters of children's niche. Thus the segment would have an additional boost to open its way into new markets.

"we are going to Playtime with a lot of expectations, we intend to open new markets in both the United States and Europe," added Eugenia Fernández, CEO of the Eugenia Fernández Kids brand.

Among the challenges that the sector has seen and will have to face in the remainder of the year is the arrival of raw materials and their logistics for production.

"the whole unemployment situation coupled with the peak of pandemic has led to an irregularity in the pace of production, but we hope that consumption and consumer confidence will be improved by the second half," said María Lucia Uribe, CEO of Baby classic.

Inexmoda estimates that this year the fashion basket will grow 18% compared to 2020 and 2.2% versus 2019. Which will also mark the children's market.

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Inexmoda, de la mano de varias empresas del mercado, espera impulsar la reactivación económica tras el impacto negativo que les dejó la pandemia con este evento. Hasta el momento se estima que la feria cuente con más de 260 compradores internacionales de 24 países, entre esos Ecuador, Estados Unidos, Costa Rica, Perú y México, que serían los de más empresas asistentes.