Spring Racing Trends in Australia S P R I N G 2 0 1 9 • W O M E N S W E A R

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Introduction | Key Apparel Categories | Apparel New-In Styles | Colour Performance Analysis | Overview on Headwear | Headwear New-In

Styles | Styles Spotted at Spring Races | Conclusion

Written by Nur Atiqah Kamarudin, Senior Business Intelligence Analyst

The Australian spring racing season is known to be a huge part ofthe nation’s culture and tradition and a main event in the fashioncalendar. The races have long acted as a platform for racegoers toshowcase their impeccable style and finery, making it a hugeopportunity for brands to tap into.

Despite Melbourne Cup 2019 hitting a 24-year low in attendancefollowing the public protests and backlash towards horse racingindustry, the event continues to be a key date for fashion in theregion.

In this report, we reviewed a total of 12 Australian apparel andaccessory brands retailing at David Jones, Myer and The Iconic, toanalyse the key head-to-toe looks offered in the Spring 2019 raceseason. More than 3,000 data points were screened from August toOctober 2019 on popular clothing items for racewear – Dresses,Jumpsuits and Suits as well as Headwear.

The apparel brands used in the analysis were Alice McCall, Sass &Bide, Thurley, Lover, By Johnny., Bec & Bridge and Shona Joy whileMorgan Taylor, Max Alexander, Gregory Ladner, Olga Berg andFord Millinery were analysed for their Headwear.

2Instagram @davidjonesstore

Introduction

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Key Apparel Categories

Dresses are consistently the most popular choice for the races.According to the Spring new arrivals (Chart 1), the categorycontinued to be the key volume driver, accounting for almost halfof the brands’ newness during the period. Feminine midi dressescontributed to almost half of new-in dresses, followed by mini andmaxi dresses.

Although Jumpsuits and Suits’ contributions were relatively minimalcompared to Dresses, these two categories have proved to be thenext popular options after dresses, just like at Royal Ascot.

Brand ContributionOverall, some brands had the competitive advantage ofdominating a high contribution in all three categories in newness,such as Alice McCall and Shona Joy.

However, for the key racewear staple, Dresses, Bec & Bridge heldthe biggest contribution during the season with 24%. It offeredvarious styles of dresses from satin slip dresses to midi floraldresses.

Meanwhile, Alice McCall had the biggest offering for Jumpsuitsand Suits, which mainly came in floral motif.

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C H A R T 1 : N E W - I N C O N T R I B U T I O N B Y C A T E G O R Y

C H A R T 2 : N E W - I N C A T E G O R Y B R E A K D O W N B Y B R A N D

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Brands Dresses Jumpsuits Suits

Alice McCall 16% 46% 30%

Sass & Bide 10% 11% 27%

Thurley 7% 3% 4%

Lover 8% 9% 1%

By Johnny. 19% 0% 2%

Bec & Bridge 24% 6% 18%

Shona Joy 16% 25% 18%

Total 100% 100% 100%

New-In Styles: Dresses & Jumpsuits

Overall, the silhouette for dresses and jumpsuits this year was morefeminine and ladylike. The key styles spotted among the brands infocus included:

Bold FloralsAlthough florals are a given for spring, the romantic printaccounted for 20% of the brands’ newness, signifying its continuedpopularity. With ‘feminine and floral’ being the official dress codefor one of the major races, Oaks Day, coupled with the versatility ofthis print, it is no doubt that florals will be a popular choice forSpring Racing.

LaceAlice McCall, Thurley and Lover were among the advocates of thistrend. Intricate lace contributed at least 10% of the season’snewness, which was mostly used in a full head-to-toe ensemble.This style was also popularised by Kate Middleton as sherepeatedly wore a full lace dress at Royal Ascot.

Puffy SleevesPuffed-sleeve tops and dresses reigned supreme on the Fall/Winter2019 and Spring/Summer 2020 catwalks. This voluminous sleevetrend was also a major offering among the Australian brands thisseason, as it was not only on dresses but also on jumpsuits. AliceMcCall, Shona Joy and Bec & Bridge were among the brandspopularising this style.

Bec & Bridge Tilly LS Midi DressAUD 450.00

Thurley Persia Midi Dress AUD 649.00

By Johnny. Watercolour Floral Strapless Dress AUD 370.00

Alice McCall Wild Flowers JumpsuitAUD 450.00

Lover Dandelion JumpsuitAUD 595.00

Shona Joy Ellington JumpsuitAUD 340.00

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New-In Styles: Suits

Some of the major Suit trends included:

Check PrintAlthough classic solid blazers held a higher contribution in theoverall jacket category, check printed blazers were also common inthis season’s newness as seen at Bec & Bridge and By Johnny. Theprint, which was more synonymous in the Fall/Winter seasonproved to be as popular in spring.

Double-Breasted BlazersThe ‘80s power suit silhouette appeared in the form of double-breasted blazers – boxy yet tailored and sleek. Shona Joy was oneof the brands advocating this style best, mostly in tonal looks.Strong or sculptured shoulders were prevalent too, giving a morestructured look to the whole ensemble.

Wide-Leg PantsAnother fall trend, the wide-leg trouser, which made a hugecomeback on the Fall/Winter 2019 runways also reappeared in thisseason’s newness. Accounting for more than 20% of the pants’newness, this style also extended to the groovy ’70s bell-bottoms,but in a more polished style.

Bec & Bridge Alexa Blazer AUD 420

Shona Joy Ellington Double Breasted Suit JacketAUD 360.00

Bec & Bridge Harlow Pants AUD 240.00

By Johnny. Check Mate BlazerAUD 390.00

Lover Francoise Blazer AUD 695.00

Sass & Bide You Are the One Pant AUD 350.00

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Core ColoursThe core colours – black, white, brown and grey - accounted fornearly 60% of the brands’ total assortment, newness and sell-outduring the period. Black and white alone contributed around 40%of the new arrivals, giving plenty of options for consumers forDerby Day, as it is widely known for its strict black and white dresscode. However, black was more popular as it showed signs ofmissed opportunity as opposed to white, which showed signs ofoverstocking with 3 percentage point variance against sell-out(Chart 3).

While nude colour was popular following the neutral, tonal trendfrom the Spring/Summer 2019 runways, it was not the case forracewear, as it showed signs of overstocking with 4 percentagepoint variance against sell-out.

Fashion ColoursPink and blue were the top two prominent fashion colours, as theywere the only fashion colours appearing in the top 5. Based onChart 4, pastel colours reigned supreme for blue, following KateMiddleton’s periwinkle blue number by Elie Saab at Royal Ascot2019. Meanwhile, the shades of pink were more playful, as bothbright and pastel hues were equally well received. Bright pinkshades were popular especially at Melbourne Cup and Stakes Day.

Interestingly, red showed signs of missed opportunity with 4percentage point variance against sell-out.

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Colour Performance Analysis

C H A R T 3 : D R E S S E S & J U M P S U I T S C O L O U R B R E A K D O W N

C H A R T 4 : P O P U L A R S H A D E S O F B L U E A N D P I N K

21%

17%

13%10%

9%

7%

6%

Total Assortment

19%

18%

16%10%

10%

5%

4%

New-In

22%

15%

12%10%

9%

8%

7%

Sell-Out

Alice McCall Bec & Bridge By Johnny. Alice McCall

Overview on Headwear

Although headwear is not compulsory in Australian spring races, itis still an integral part of the race day outfit, completing the look.Headbands and fascinators took up a major contribution in thenew-in styles, accounting for more than 70% of this season’snewness.

With the growing popularity of hair accessories recently, Hair Clipswere also an alternative form of headwear, albeit having arelatively small contribution. Pearls, resin and tortoiseshell hairclips, which were popular in the ‘90s, commanded most of the hairclips styling this season.

Brand ContributionOverall, Morgan Taylor and Gregory Ladner were the biggestcontributors to the headwear newness. Morgan Taylor led in theHeadbands and Fascinators department, while Gregory Ladnerdominated Hats marginally.

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C H A R T 5 : N E W - I N C O N T R I B U T I O N B Y C A T E G O R Y

C H A R T 6 : N E W - I N C A T E G O R Y C O N T R I B U T I O N B Y B R A N D S

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37%

35%

20%

8%

New-In Contribution

Headbands

Fascinators

Hats

Hair Clips

Brands Headbands Fascinators Hats

Morgan Taylor 25% 35% 43%

Max Alexander 20% 30% 7%

Gregory Ladner 22% 14% 44%

Olga Berg 22% 12% 1%

Ford Millinery 11% 9% 5%

Total 100% 100% 100%

New-In Styles: Headwear

With no stringent guidelines or rules for headpieces for theAustralian spring racing season, the key trends surroundingnewness in alternative forms of headwear were more robust andsaw a lot of varieties. These included:

OTT HeadbandsAs seen at Prada, the padded ‘80s headband is now back on trend,giving inspiration for over-the-top headbands as a key headweartrend for the races. The ‘crown’ look was prevalent, mostly in theform of flower garlands. Other elaborate headband styles includedthe colourful halo crown, wide and high padded headbands, as wellas the large turban style headband, which also came in floral print.

BoaterStraw in millinery continued to be popular, especially for wide brimhats. This season, the boater style with wide ribbons took the centrestage. This style offering was mostly seen at Morgan Taylor andGregory Ladner in neutral colours but loud fashion colours such aspink, red and orange were popular too.

Bow ElementsBig bows were a major element in headwear this season as theyappeared not only in the form of satin hair clips but also acrossheadbands, fascinators, and hats.

Ford Millinery Akira Headpiece AUD 289.95

Gregory Ladner Shallow Hood BoaterAUD 79.95

Morgan Taylor Velvet Bow Clip AUD 49.95

Olga Berg Luciana Raffia Fringe HaloAUD 69.95

Ford Millinery Spangle Star BoaterAUD 499.95

Max Alexander Black Satin-Covered Pillbox with Large BowAUD 129.00

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The spring races, which officially kicked off in October with theCaulfield Cup and The Everest, saw similar trending styles amongthe Australian influencers and racegoers. The two races, which fellon the same day, saw dresses, sleek pantsuits and jumpsuits to beamong the popular choices despite having different themes anddress codes.

As predicted by stylists, tonal tailored suits proved to be popular,especially at the Caulfield Cup. Floral prints were especially huge,appearing in dresses in feminine silhouettes with puffy sleeves andruffles during the event. This style was also prominent at TheEverest, complete with statement headbands. Pink, blue and yellowwere among the popular colour choices aside from the usual corecolours.

As for Derby Day, ultra-feminine and sophisticated looks wereapparent, where attendees adhered to the black and white dresscode, donning full lace dresses as well as tailored skirt suits andjumpsuits. Classic wide-brimmed hats were mostly chosen tocomplete the look.

Meanwhile, Melbourne Cup, which also known as ‘the race thatstops the nation’, saw more bold, progressive styles yet stillremained feminine. As expected, the biggest event in the SpringRacing Carnival was more colourful, as racegoers mostly came inbright fuchsia, canary yellow and scarlet red. Softer hues such asbaby blue and blush pink were popular too.

Styles Spotted at Spring Races

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@victorialee @katewaterhouse7 @ amypejkovic

@brookehogan1 @michellebattersby @nadiabartel

Main Findings

Floral Print to Stay: Although floral prints tend to evolveseason after season – from garish, retro florals in 2018 tobold florals in 2019, the print remains a success andcontinues to have its pull. The brands’ constant injection ofnewness in this print coupled with the high adoptionamongst racegoers further prove that the print is a must-have for the racing season.

The recent trend on feminine silhouettes such as puffysleeves, midi length dresses and romantic ruffles, as well asgirlish hair accessories also helped amplify its popularity,making this combination a key style that will influence thewedding season. Also, as the races in the United Kingdomare more stringent with the dress codes, the femininesilhouette seen in the newness will continue to shape theracewear trends in 2020, but in a more conservative style.

Importance of Fashion Colours: While the monochromaticblack and white will always remain as the main core coloursin apparel, fashion colours showed of bigger importance toget right during the spring races. For instance, the lack ofred offerings as depicted in Chart 3 proved to be a hugemissed opportunity for the brands. Furthermore, RoyalAscot that took place during mid year has definitelyinfluenced the popularity of certain colours such as icy blue,pink and red, which would point towards consumers’demand.

Next Steps for Brands

Balancing the Art and Science of Fashion: The trends fromthe runway, and street styles from Instagram, have provento be good indicators of what would be trending for theraces. Furthermore, there is opportunity for localAustralian brands thanks to the 6-month seasonal gapAustralian labels have compared to the NorthernHemisphere brands.

The success seen with the recent trending silhouette, puffysleeves, which was huge not only on social media but alsoacross fast fashion retailers, was reflected similarly inAustralia. Trending fashion colours from the runways thathave proven to be successful will also help brandsunderstand how colours and trends perform over time.

Make Informed Decision-Making: Relying solely on runwaytrends would be risky when it comes to commercialinterpretation. With data-backed trend analytics, brandswould have a higher rate of success and efficiency, as wellas a guided direction, provided that monitoring andtracking is done diligently.

As spring racing is a key event on the yearly calendar,brands should monitor recurring success from theirbestsellers and update them for new collections withtrending prints, silhouettes and colours of the season todrive commercialism.

Conclusion

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Instagram @alicemccallptyltd

Metric Description

Assortment SKUs Count The total count of stock keeping unit (SKU) i.e. the number of styles that a brand offers. In the report context, it is the total product count within a data set.

New-In The products that are newly added to the retail website within the timeframe selected.

New-In Rate The number of new products launched by a brand within the timeframe selected. It is calculated by dividing the new-in count over the total product count within a data set.

New-In Contribution % Calculated by dividing the number of new-in product count over the total new-in count within a data set.

Sell-Out A product registers a sell-out event when it is indicated as out-of-stock or no longer published on the website.

Sell-Out Contribution % Calculated by dividing the number of sell-out product count over the total sell-out count within a data set.

Percentage Point Variance (New-In vs. Sell-Out)

Calculated by subtracting the new-in contribution with sell-out contribution on unit percentage difference. Metric is used to indicate sign of potential missed opportunities and overstocking.

Definition of Key Metrics

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