"U.S. online sales of luxury fashion items are showing significant growth coming from each of the key segments (footwear, accessories, and apparel) according to the new U.S. Luxury E‑commerce Report from The NPD Group. Much of the nearly 50% increase in dollar sales seen in recent years across these segments is attributed to an increase in buyer spending."

"'The luxury market is evolving, new brands are getting attention, and online retailer platforms are elevating the competitive landscape,' said Marshal Cohen, chief industry advisor, The NPD Group. 'The younger, multi-​ethnic demographic that is more attracted to purchasing designer products online, even more than the average online accessories, footwear, or apparel buyer, is a major contributor to this evolution.'”

Clothes shopping isn't the only activity Luxury Product Shoppers are up to online. According to AudienceSCAN, within the last 30 days, 39.8% of these shoppers used a search engine to research a product they were considering for purchase and 39.6% played online games. Within the last six months, they have used a mobile device to watch online or streamed videos (46.8%) and order food for takeout or delivery (28.8%). Of these shoppers, 78.7% prefer to use Google to fulfill their online searching needs

"The biggest spending increase within the online luxury market came from apparel, growing 17% to an average of $716 spent per buyer. While the frequency of online purchases held steady for luxury apparel and fashion accessories both segments saw increases in the amount consumers spent on those purchases. Fashion accessories increased their average online luxury  spend per buyer by 5%, to $782."

"Nearly half of the online luxury fashion dollar sales come from footwear, which has the highest average annual spend per buyer and annual purchase frequency. The average online luxury footwear spend increased 4% to $794, and purchase frequency also increased slightly to 1.6 times per year."

“'It’s not just about the statement bag anymore, now, thanks to expanded accessibility, the statement shoe is also an area of focus and investment for consumers,' said Cohen. 'If we pay attention to what consumers are saying, these new market dynamics spell a great deal of opportunity across the entire luxury fashion market.'”

How should luxury clothing item retailers be promoting their wares to Luxury Product Shoppers? Digitally, of course! Last year, according to AudienceSCAN, these shoppers took action after seeing an advertisement on a smartphone app or after receiving an ad via text (47.4%), after receiving an email ad (46.3%) and after seeing ads on Daily Deals sites such as Groupon (44.8%). They're also 20% more likely than other adults to click on text link ads on websites. Don't forget to throw some traditional ads into the campaign though. Last year, 56% of this audience took action after seeing a TV commercial and 48.7% were motivated by direct mail ads.

Online Clothing Retailers to Target Luxury ShoppersAudienceSCAN data is available for your applications and dashboards through the SalesFuel API. Media companies and agencies can access AudienceSCAN data through the AudienceSCAN Reports in AdMall.