Azernews.Az

By Bloomberg

Adaptations of traditional Japanese gowns and ripped denim were 2014’s fastest fashion growing trends, while British department store John Lewis Partnership Plc sold the most new apparel products at full price, according to a study of U.K. and U.S. retailers.

Hennes & Mauritz AB’s $24.95 short kimono and Topshop’s $75 Moto Ripped Jamie Jeans exemplify this year’s most enduring and furthest-reaching trends, research company Editd said in the report published today. Employee-owned John Lewis had the best product merchandising and mix, offering 154,000 new clothing items by brands including Ted Baker and Mango, beating chains including Target Corp., Asos Plc, Nordstrom Inc. and Zalando SE.

“Looking toward 2015, having the right product at the right price and at the right time will continue to determine retail success,” London-based Editd said. “Smaller retailers will struggle to compete with the aggressive discounting at large online department retailers.”

Nike Inc. was 2014’s best-selling brand at full price, even though almost a third of its products are currently discounted, Editd said. Cami tops, printed maxi skirts and cork-heeled wedges were among the industry’s worst-selling products and were heavily discounted, the fashion researcher said.

Nordstrom offered the highest number of discounts, helping boost sales 3.9 percent in the third quarter and showing that the Seattle-based retailer’s typical customer is attracted by pricing, Editd said. Dallas-based department-store chain Neiman Marcus Group LLC was the biggest communicator, sending the most newsletters, the researcher said.