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One of the primary challenges for beachwear brands is maintaining an optimal balance between one-piece and two-piece bikinis. Retviews' real-time retail data reveals that leading brands in the European market are increasing their assortment of one-piece bathing suits this year, while decreasing the share of two-piece bikinis, which traditionally dominate collections. As a whole, the swimwear market’s price also continues to grow, exhibiting a 5% YoY increase.  

Taking a more in-depth look into the details behind the trend, along with the growing prominence of the classic one-piece in collections, Retviews’ data indicates an additional increase in shapewear-style swimwear.

A year-on-year 172% increase of shapewear in one-pieces, and 13% for bottoms, brands are widening their scope with more innovative fabrics in their swimwear, such as Oysho’s “extra-compressive shapewear-like fabric”. Access to automated retail intelligence is key for brands to ensure they are able to quickly spot and leverage opportunities for assortment growth.

As swimwear takes over brand collections with new pieces added regularly in the past weeks, how are new arrivals split in terms of color? Retviews’ data shows vibrant colors like blue, green, pink, and classic black dominate the European swimwear market. While brands such as Etam and Zara align with this trend, Oysho focuses on neutral and classic shades, favoring black, blue, and green, all of which an assortment share higher than the market average. 

Check what the most prominent colors being added to collections are with Retviews, and evaluate your stock levels more efficiently. Are you selling out of your bright pink suits but only have 2% of pink swimsuits? Find out how you can make more strategic decisions both when planning your collections and during in-season management.

Looking at the menswear swimwear segment in particular, Retviews’ data indicates that the colors being launched in new beach collections are significantly more muted shades of blue, with pale khaki shades also standing out in leading brands’ recent swimwear launches in the European market. You can dive further into each of your competitors’ assortment splits with Retviews as your retail intelligence partner.

Understanding the popularity of different bikini cuts is essential for effective assortment planning Considering the prominence of two-piece bikinis in the European market, despite their decrease within the past year, begs the question of which style is the most popular in terms of cut, across the market? Retviews’ retail data on assortment breadth, indicates a year-on-year decline in the most popular bikini bottom cut, the Brazilian, and a strong 75% increase in string bikinis within the European market.  

Across swimwear releases, Retviews’ data shows that brands across the European market are releasing numerous swimwear shapes and cuts in the same fabrics and styles, thus catering to various preferences and offering different levels of coverage within the same colorway or design. 

This level of detail enables brands to make more efficient decisions regarding their own releases. By better understanding competitors’ strategies and market behavior, brands can fine-tune their assortments to best meet consumer demand. 
 

In the fast-paced beachwear market, staying ahead requires a keen understanding of the market. Retviews’ insights help brands stay ahead of market trends, plan their collections more effectively and foster business-wide strategic decision-making. By closely monitoring competitors and overall market behavior, your brand can ensure you have the right product mix, at the right time, to drive optimal sell-through and boost profitability, selling the right items, at the right time and price.  

Chat with one of our fashion experts to get a better understanding of how you can optimize your collection building strategy.