Five high street fashion brands improved their online visibility last year - report

By

Nigel TAYLOR

Published
May 26, 2021

Who were winners and losers when it came to the UK high street fashion retailer’s online performance over the last year?

Step forward winners Next, John Lewis, Marks & Spencer, Matalan and H&M, which all saw the biggest growth in online visibility over the period, according to an investigation by Salience.

And the decliners? Debenhams, Urban Outfitters, USC, Burton and Net-A-Porter lost the most visibility, according to the report, which analysed search data from Google and added "expert analysis".

Salience said Next’s visibility improved by 28% compared to the rest of the market. However Debenhams, which had been forced to close its stores, saw its score decline by 87% compared to the rest of the market. 

Overall, the online high street fashion market grew slightly by 3% over the course of the year, the report also claims.

Analysis of keyword trends also revealed what the public had been searching for. Unsurprisingly, cosy clothes (loungewear) reigned supreme in 2020, with surging searches for ‘hoodies for men’ (+108%), ‘joggers for men’ (+212%) ‘sweatshirts for women’ (+161%) and ‘oversized hoodies’ (+111%).

By comparison, searches for ‘swimwear’ declined 54%, and ‘stick on bra’ fell 70%.

Richard Waters, Search Expert at Salience said: “Our analysis of the online high street market shows how retailers have either sank or swam in the transition to online shopping. Unfortunately, for brands like Debenhams, their troubles on the high street reflected in their online performance”.

He added: “For any brand looking to make their online presence stronger, good search marketing is key. Beyond people searching for brand names directly, brands need to ensure their sites are ranking for product keywords and broader terms”.