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The Retail Channel Shift

How digital commerce growth and premium physical retail should be read together.

Fashion AI™ Research

The Retail Channel Shift

Digital commerce is still gaining share in major markets, but physical luxury remains expensive and strategically important. The decision is increasingly about channel role, not channel replacement.

MarketPeriod / scopeRetail / commerce signalFashion / apparel signalE-com shareE-com YoYDecision read
United States
U.S. Census Bureau, 2026 U.S. Census Bureau, 2026
Jul 2026 retail · Q1 2026 e-com+5.0%+5.0% clothing & accessories YoY · +1.9% MoM16.9%+9.8%July total retail was 5.0% above a year earlier; clothing and clothing-accessories stores were also 5.0% higher year over year and 1.9% higher month over month. Q1 e-commerce remains the latest e-commerce release held in this build.
Canada
Statistics Canada, 2026
Apr–May 2026+3.7%+5.4%+0.8%Clothing and clothing-accessories retail sales were ahead of total retail year over year in April.
United Kingdom
UK Office for National Statistics, 2026
Jun 2026+4.2%+1.9% clothing-store volume MoM29.4%+14.4%June retail volumes were 4.2% above a year earlier; online sales values rose 14.4% year over year and clothing-store volumes rose 1.9% month over month.
Singapore
Singapore Department of Statistics, 2026
Jun 2026+4.0%16.4%June retail trade sales rose 4.0% year over year; online retail represented 16.4% of retail trade sales.
South Korea
Republic of Korea Ministry of Data and Statistics, 2026
Jun 2026−1.5% online clothing YoY29.9%+10.7%June online shopping reached KRW 24.6067tn, up 10.7% year over year; online goods represented about 29.9% of retail and online clothing transactions were 1.5% lower year over year.
Spain
Instituto Nacional de Estadística (Spain), 2026
Jun 2026+0.5%General retail trade index increased 0.5% year over year at constant prices and 0.3% month over month.
China
National Bureau of Statistics of China, 2026
H1 2026 · Jun 2026+1.3%+6.2% online clothing H1 YoY+4.8%H1 total retail grew 1.3%; online physical-goods retail grew 4.8% and online clothing grew 6.2%. Brand-exclusive-store sales among above-designated-size retailers fell 8.7%.
Hong Kong SAR
Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department, 2026
Jun 2026+4.6%The provisional value of total retail sales increased 4.6% year over year in June.
Australia
Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2026
Jun 2026 · Q2 2026+0.8% household spend MoM−0.7% clothing & footwear spend MoM · +0.5% Q2 volume q/qAustralia’s current public consumption read is household spending rather than a directly comparable retail-sales series. Clothing and footwear softened in June while Q2 volumes were higher quarter over quarter.
Mexico
Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía (INEGI), 2026
Apr 2026+0.8% retail-trade revenue MoMINEGI reported retail-trade revenues up 0.8% month over month in April. This is broad commerce context, not a fashion-sales measure.
Saudi Arabia
General Authority for Statistics (Saudi Arabia), 2026
May 2026+3.6% wholesale & retail operating revenue YoYSaudi wholesale and retail trade and motor-vehicle-repair operating revenue rose 3.6% year over year and 1.3% month over month. Scope is broader than fashion retail.
Brazil
Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE), 2026
Apr 2026−1.5% total retail volume MoM−0.1% fabric, apparel & footwear MoMIBGE’s April release shows a monthly decline in total retail and a near-flat fabric, apparel and footwear category. Keep this monthly volume read separate from year-over-year measures.

Reported Latest public statistical releases held in this build. Periods, definitions and channel scope differ by market; unlike series are not treated as directly comparable fashion-sales measures.

CityStreetYear on yearUSD / sf / yrWatch
São PauloOscar Freire, Jardins+65.0%123
LondonNew Bond Street+22.0%2,231
OsakaMidosuji+14.0%914
TokyoGinza+10.0%1,257
DubaiDubai Mall, Fashion Avenue+9.0%518
Ho Chi Minh CityDong Khoi+9.0%346
BarcelonaPasseig de Gràcia+8.0%373
RomeVia Condotti+7.0%1,743
TorontoBloor Street+5.0%217
SydneyPitt Street Mall+4.0%795
LisbonChiado+4.0%183
New DelhiKhan Market+3.0%223
ViennaKohlmarkt+2.0%601
SingaporeOrchard Road+2.0%478
BangkokCentral Retail District+2.0%130
SeoulMyeongdong+1.0%653
ShanghaiWest Nanjing Road+1.0%517
MilanVia Montenapoleone0.0%2,179
New YorkUpper Fifth Avenue0.0%2,000
ParisAvenue des Champs-Élysées0.0%1,364
ZurichBahnhofstrasse0.0%1,051
AmsterdamP.C. Hooftstraat0.0%305
CopenhagenStrøget0.0%191
AntwerpMeir0.0%185
Hong KongTsim Sha Tsui-6.0%1,515
Mexico CityPresidente Masaryk-10.0%100
Los AngelesRodeo Drive1,100

Reported Cushman & Wakefield, 2025