Brazil's Fashion Sales Drop 50% Amid Coronavirus Pandemic
“All of Brazil is closed and the only stuff that’s selling is online.”
Brazil, which currently reports over 66,000 confirmed cases and 4,500 deaths from the coronavirus at time of writing, is facing severe economic drawbacks as a result of the pandemic, leading to an estimated drop of 50 percent in fashion sales.
The figure comes from a recent report by WWD, which notes a comment from chief financial officer Luis Lima from luxury beachwear brand Lenny Niemeyer — “We are expecting 50 percent across the board.” — that shares the same sentiment as analysts’ predictions for retails sales in general. Lima also pointed out that lockdowns in the country’s biggest cities including São Paulo and Rio have led to many of its store being temporarily shut down. Other big Brazilian brands such as Lojas Renner, Riachuelo and Magazine Luiza are all also expected to see a similar decrease in sales.
“All of Brazil is closed and the only stuff that’s selling is online,” says Andrea Milanez, who handles São Paulo Fashion Week’s public relations. “Everyone is doing sales but even then, no one is buying. People are worried about what is happening.” She also points out that after the pandemic, the consumer’s spending habits will change: “People won’t buy like they used to,” she added. “They will probably change their view of fashion and how they buy it. We will probably see a lot more online buying.”
In other business-related news, adidas’ sales fell by 19 percent and missed profit forecasts by 93 percent in Q1 2020.
