Online market shares down for Boohoo, and up for About You

Boohoo is a British fashion group. The group owns a dozen brands, including Pretty Little Thing. Boohoo was founded in 2006 and targets Gen Z. On its website, the message is clear, “A fashion brand for a social generation.”

And in the kingdom of lycra, there’s plenty to choose from: every week, these eCommerce sites offer around 3,000 new products. Constant renewal and affordable prices – the perfect recipe for seducing these digital scavengers. They are ultra-connected and accustomed to disposable fashion that can be bought straight from their smartphones.

Online sales are declining for Boohoo. Between 2021 and 2023, the weight of the online sales fell by 20%.

In Germany, About You is a fashion retailer, part of the Otto Group. Born in 2014, it is already present in 25 countries within less than a decade. To target Gen Z, it relies on:

• Influencer Marketing: they collaborate with influencers to create and promote its collections
• Personalization: on the website and application, the feed is personalized according to purchase history

About You growing – online sales have doubled in the last 2 years.

Average spending and purchase frequency at Boohoo and About You

Over the 2023 period from January 1 to April 30, Boohoo online customers had a purchase frequency of 1.8 for an average spend of €213.

For About You, the purchase frequency is 1.2 for an average spend 4 times lower than that of Boohoo.

Taking Shein as a point of comparison:

• In the UK, purchase frequency is the same as Boohoo: 1.8, for an average spend of €50
• In Germany, the purchase frequency is 2, with an average spend of €85

Sales by generation: how old are Boohoo and About You customers?

Boohoo and About You have exactly the same customer typology. Gen Z accounts for half of their customer base, which is also made up of 40% millennials. Gen X accounts for just 9% of their buyers – and Generation B is virtually non-existent.

• For About You, 77% of the clientele is female – and 23% male
• For Boohoo, 71% of the brand’s customers are women – and 29% are men

As brands, how do they differentiate themselves with the same core target?

By integrating second-hand into their business model

Since 2020, About You has had a “Second Love” category on its site, dedicated to second-hand products. The group born in 2014 integrated second-hand into its business model just a few years after its launch. For second-hand products, free delivery and returns are available, exactly as for new products.

Expanding its offer

More surprisingly, the German group also offers a B2B service:

• About You Tech Services: an API solution for retailers
• About You Brand Relations & Retail Media: native ads for external partners