In the second of our three-part UK lingerie analysis we're looking at price. Retail success hinges on a careful balance of price, product and timing. Brands and retailers are relying on data analytics to spot changes in their competitors' strategies and identify areas of opportunity. Here, we've looked at historic data and real-time data to understand the way the market is changing.
Average pricing
Drilling down into the average price of new product arrivals in the UK in September 2014, 2013 and 2012 it's worth pointing out that whilst the average pricing of bras have grown 12% - from £26.50 in 2012, to £29.80 in 2014, the average price of a pair of knickers on the UK market (which takes in luxury through to value) has shrunk - from £17.40 in 2012 to £16.40 in 2014.
The mass and value markets currently see £9.99 as the average price of a pair of knickers and £22 for a bra.
The pricing sweet spot
Average pricing doesn't account for whether the garment will sell at full price or at a discount and whether it will be restocked. With EDITD, retailers can drill down into data to reveal the most successful products - those, which are consistently restocked when they sell out, and are never discounted. This reveals the most successful price point of bras to be £16-20, and of knickers to be £4-5.
Price evolution
Looking at options charts reveals that the way the UK market stocks lingerie reflects the pricing sweet spots, with the highest concentration of products sitting within those price points. We've seen that average pricing on bras has gone up, and knickers have gone down (!) but it's interesting to see the shift in balance of product weighting over the last two years.
In September 2012, bra pricing was bottom heavy - the options bubbles are fairly evenly stacked around the lower price points, and peter out faster. By September 2013, the emphasis had shifted dramatically to the 'pricing sweet spot' of £16-£24, with the lower end of pricing suffering, and still a swift drop off on higher price points.
This September, the balance has lined up well - not only is the pricing sweet spot addressed, but there is harmony in the pricing around it. The lingerie market has matured, UK retailers are more confident at identifying their core range pricing and their trend-led or premium offerings. This has been responsible for the upward lift in average pricing of bras.
Like our lingerie analysis so far? Have a look at the third part, which is discussing the best timing strategies.
