Agility Is the Winning Strategy for Children’s Apparel Retailers The childrenswear retailers with the most success are those who adapt to the technologies most attractive and beneficial to parents, such as convenient and painless online shopping and proactive social media interaction. Many retailers are also very conscious of how “celebrity children” influence what parents buy, parents’ desire to dress their children as miniature versions of themselves and diversifying with not only apparel choices, but also allied items, such as children’s décor. These and other factors led to a 2.2% increase in retail sales at family clothing stores (NAICS code 44814) for 2017, or a total of $105.88 billion, compared to $103.62 billion for 2016.

The New Population Paradigm By 2020, Caucasian American youths 18 years of age and younger will become a “minority” for the first time. By 2060, the change will be even greater, as Caucasian American youths will account for 36.5% of the population younger than 18. Latinx American youths will record the largest increase from 2018 to 2060, or 25.3% and 32.0%, respectively, with Asian American youths increasing from 5.1% to 7.8%. Cultural identification and celebrity influences will require childrenswear brands and retailers to adjust accordingly, including their products and how they market to the parents of these children and the children themselves.

Targeting Young Parents Understanding parenting trends is also critical for retailers targeting parents for children’s apparel purchases. For example, by 2021, almost 50% of all new parents will be from Generation Z, although the oldest is only 23 during 2018. A 2017 Pew Research Center study found 25% of US parents were unmarried and living with a child. The traditional view of mostly solo mothers raising at least one child alone has declined from its peak of 88% during 1968 to 53% during 2017. Another trend from Pew Research Center is an increase in the percentage of US adults who think the “ideal” family is 3 or more children. 2018’s 41% is essentially the same as 1997’s 42%; however, 50% of US adults still think 0–2 children is ideal.

Mothers’ Influence Motherhood is another important trend, as the median age for women who become mothers is approximately 26 today, compared to 23 during 1994. The primary reasons have been delayed marriages and a commitment to additional education. Not surprisingly, the largest percentages of working mothers, according to The Media Audit’s February 2018 Rolling Aggregate Survey, are 25–34, at 23.2%, and 35–44, at 29.2%, and the largest percentage, or 39%, earns $50K to $100K. Using the same income range, 40.9% of Caucasian American working mothers earn that amount, 34.9% of African American working mothers, 37.0% of Latina American working mothers and 37.2% of Asian American working mothers.

Teens Have Considerable Buying Power When marketing children’s apparel, the children themselves must be part of the target audience. By 2020, Generation Z, or those born during 1996 or later, will be one-third of the US population and there will be 1.5 million more of them than Millennials. According to Piper Jaffray’s Spring 2018 Taking Stock with Teens® Survey, teens spent 6% more during spring 2018 than fall 2017 and 2% more than spring 2017. Teens also increased their online shopping time, from 17% to 19% YOY. According to a June 2017 survey, 39% of Generation Zers, said their most-used brand engagement channel was in-store, but larger percentages of them used social media, Websites and mobile/tablet apps than Millennials.

Back-to-School Is Second-Largest Seasonal Boost for Children’s Apparel Sales Parents and teens purchase clothing during spring and the holiday shopping season, but back-to-school, as the second-largest annual shopping season, contributes a huge amount, or approximately $84.8 billion for 2018, a 3% to 4% increase from 2017. According to the National Retail Federation (and no surprise to retailers, advertisers and advertising media reps), 55% of the total average spending per household of $685 for 2018 will be for clothing, 35%, and footwear, 20%. For college students, electronics, at 24%, were expected to be the largest 2018 purchase category, followed by clothing, 16%; furnishings, 12%; food, 11%; footwear, 9%; personal care, 8%; and school supplies and gift cards, 7% each.

Advertising Strategies The “mini-me” trend is still popular, with parents and children eager to dress similarly. Family clothing stores can take advantage of this trend by creating displays with mix-and-match fashions for both parents and their children. The 90s logo revival is also popular among both women and teens, especially in teens’ Champion and Tommy Hilfiger lines as well as luxury brands. Local retailers could gain market share during the holiday shopping season by emphasizing this revival. The holiday shopping season is also an opportunity to promote social conscious, which resonates with younger parents and teens, by offering a post-holiday coupon/discount when customers donate usable clothing items for homeless and low-income families.

New Media Strategies Create a quarterly/seasonal children’s apparel shopping guide in two versions, for parents and teens, with free downloads from stores’ Websites and/or social media. Separate blog posts, short videos, in particular, can highlight featured items from the guides. Local children’s and/or family clothing stores may be able to forge partnerships with local stores selling children décor, for example, and cross-promote with coupons or discounts and social media posts featuring the other partner’s merchandise. Use monthly birthstones as the basis for blog posts and other online content, explaining their origin and matching them with appropriate children’s apparel with a special discount during the week of children’s birthdays.