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interview December 2024 What's the Future of Fashion?
Interview by Tara Donaldson, Photography by Michael Kohlslinkedin January 2026 Fashion overstock is like fresh produce: if it doesn’t sell ...
There’s a prevailing belief in the industry that #digitization and #AI will finally solve the overstock problem. But off-price retail isn’t just a temporary fix - it’s a structural feature of the system, acting as a release valve for persistent oversupply. In challenging times like these, wholesale often plans too optimistically and relies on discounting and off-price channels as a fallback. The two-year value curve tells the story clearly. Products launched at full price with short shelf lives rapidly depreciate. Proprietary data from the team at smatch shows that after two years, discounted items typically retain only around 17% of their original retail value. In practice, that means clearing older inventory often requires markdowns of 74–83% off the original price.
press March 2026 War in the Middle East Raises Questions for Fashion
Vogue Business by Tara DonaldsonAchim comments on the shifting outlook for luxury amidst the war in the Middle East.
Before the recent escalation, the Middle East was one of the few growth regions for luxury globally. However, Achim warns that disruption in the region will directly impact demand. While long-term fundamentals remain intact, he cautions that the duration of instability will determine the scale of impact – with short-term shocks affecting the current selling season and prolonged uncertainty posing broader risks to growth.
press April 2026 Bandage dresses and sellout shoes: Big Luxury’s bid to reinv...
Financial Times by Adrienne Klasa, Elizabeth Paton, Silvia Sciorilli BorrelliAchim comments on the current luxury slowdown and how increased conflict pressure is shaping the luxury industry’s outlook.
The post-fashion week mood offers tentative glimmers of optimism, but no meaningful shift in momentum. Achim highlights that the sector's challenges go far beyond the immediate impact of the Middle East conflict. While the conflict is directly affecting regional demand and suppressing tourism flows, its broader consequences – rising inflation and higher energy prices – are weighing on consumer spending appetite. Even with a quick resolution, recovery takes time, with delayed effects on the current selling season. The industry's structural challenges, from pricing to positioning, remain unresolved. Achim warns that external shocks should not distract from the industry's need for structural adjustment.
press April 2026 After Years of Double-Digit Sales Growth, Luxury Retailers ...
The Daily Upside by Nelson WangAchim discusses how self-inflicted structural issues contributed to the global luxury slowdown.
While luxury has had strong aggregate growth over recent decades, escalating geopolitical turmoil, slowing growth in China, US tariffs, and AI disruption have contributed to the industry's downturn. Achim states the luxury sector is in crisis, largely due to self-inflicted issues – particularly steep price increases that have alienated aspirational customers and lowered the perceived promise-to-value ratio. As a result, brands are making adjustments, such as expanding entry-level offerings and reshuffling creative leadership. Achim frames these efforts as the industry's early experiments to address and correct its challenges.
press April 2026 The new luxury code
Der Aktionär by Sarina RosenbuschAchim addresses current volatile dynamics challenging the luxury industry.
He sheds light on his perspective on the current forces influencing the luxury market. He assesses the repercussions of the Middle East conflict on the sector, what it will take for the sector to bounce back, and where luxury is heading. Achim points to a challenging market environment, highlighting the sharp decline in tourism throughout the Middle East, which has led to significant losses in retail traffic. He stresses the urgency for a widespread reset within the industry: luxury brands must address unchecked price hikes and prioritize quality and ongoing creative innovation. Expecting a return to double-digit growth is unrealistic – the sector will stabilize at more moderate rates.
press June 2026 Luxury Brands Are Grappling With Issues of Price, Quality an...
WWD by Miles SochaAchim diagnoses luxury's self-inflicted crisis and sets out what a recovery demands.
Luxury is facing a credibility reckoning of its own making. Years of aggressive pricing, compounded by growing consumer scrutiny over craftsmanship and supply-chain practices, have deepened a mistrust many consumers already held. Post-pandemic buyers are no longer spending on aspiration alone - they are demanding justification. Achim’s prescription is a return to the fundamentals of luxury and restraint: craftsmanship, quality, and transparency. Brands that merely market these values rather than live them, he warns, will be exposed once the market stabilizes and consumer selectivity sharpens.
press June 2026 The list of the 50 most important Germans in fashion
FAZ Magazin, Achtung ModeAchim is named among Germany's 50 most influential figures in fashion, recognized as the expert with in-depth knowledge in the fashion industry.
Ranked #38 on FAZ Magazin's annual “A50” list, Achim is named as the first call in Germany when the conversation turns to the luxury reckoning or the future of the fashion industry. The publication spotlights his blend of strategic sharpness and entrepreneurial conviction. The combination that has made him vital to brands navigating today's macro environment.
linkedin June 2026 (Garden) office beats home office
Spring days lie behind us, and as the days grow longer, lighter, and more summery, it shows at our FashionSIGHTS office, too. The first half of the year has been busy: lots of research, thinking, and client trips to Barcelona, London, Paris, Milan, Berlin, Amsterdam, and Mexico City. Now, as the season shifts, we're kicking it off properly with the opening of our hashtag#garden office. Those who have been following FashionSIGHTS closely know that a year ago, there was no garden to speak of. Now the whole team gets to enjoy a green, open space. On sunny days, it becomes our second office and the place where our best thinking happens. And why we all do home office, when it suits the schedule, we prefer to be working together as a team. (Garden) office beats home office. Looking ahead, the months before the summer break are busy. We're finalizing our interview series and are focusing on our book project. We're also expanding the team in the coming weeks. Whats your view? Do you prefer office, garden office or home office? What is best for your team?
linkedin June 2026 The global fashion wallet is shifting.
The top 15 countries for clothing and footwear spending look very different today than they did 15 years ago. While the US remains #1, the real story lies beneath the surface: the ranking is becoming more competitive and growth momentum is increasingly shifting toward emerging markets. Three observations stand out: 1. The entry bar has been raised In 2010, Indonesia entered the top 15 with around $22 billion in clothing and footwear expenditure. In 2025, Argentina needed roughly $30 billion to claim the same spot. While inflation explains part of this increase, more consumer economies are reaching meaningful scale, making the lower end of the ranking increasingly competitive. 2. Emerging markets are reshaping the leaderboard India climbed from #8 to #3. Turkey moved from #14 to #10. Argentina entered the top 15. Meanwhile, several mature markets lost relative ground: Japan fell from #2 to #6, Italy from #5 to #7, France from #9 to #11, and Spain dropped out of the ranking entirely. Not all declines reflect weaker consumer demand. In Brazil and Japan, currency depreciation against the US dollar significantly reduced nominal spending growth when measured in USD, despite continued growth in local-currency terms. The strongest upward moves, however, are coming from large consumer economies where rising incomes are expanding the consumer class. Since 2010, China and India have seen a strong increase in the share of their populations with meaningful discretionary spending power, which in turn fundamentally reshaped fashion demand. 3. The US still leads, but China is closing the gap The US remains the world's largest apparel market, with spending rising from approximately $273 billion to $470 billion between 2010 and 2025. China's trajectory is even more remarkable. While moving up "only" one position, from #3 to #2, its clothing expenditure grew at nearly 9% CAGR over the period, reaching $324 billion and steadily narrowing the gap with the US. Behind that growth is a profound shift in consumer purchasing power. In 2010, only around one-fifth of China's population belonged to the consumer class. Today, that figure exceeds 70%. Turkey tells a related story. While it already had a sizeable consumer class in 2010, its wealthy population expanded from roughly 1 million to 19 million people over the period, providing a powerful tailwind for fashion spending. The broader takeaway: Fashion consumption is being redistributed. The next phase of growth will require understanding where consumer spending power is created in the future. Thank you to World Data Lab for sharing the data and insights behind this analysis. Source: World Data Lab
linkedin June 2026 A lot of money is still being made in the Fashion industry!
This time, I was the interviewee sharing my perspective on the status quo of the fashion industry. I sat down with Jürgen Müller from SUITS. Executive Search for his publishing format profashionals. Globally, fashion is still a $2 trillion industry. So why does it feel as if so many companies were caught off guard? Because the pressure to change was never high enough. Too many companies stood still like a deer caught in the headlights. When decent money is still being made, it is easy to believe that the good old days will return. But they won’t. Wardrobes in the West are full. Consumers are spending less on clothing. This is not cyclical. It is structural. So what will separate winners from losers going forward? As a brand, you need relevance. As a company, you need critical mass. Ten years ago, €1 billion in revenue could give you that scale. Today, you probably need €3 to €5 billion. The market will continue to consolidate. First in the mid-market, now increasingly in premium. But brands rarely disappear; companies do. They are bought, licensed, absorbed or integrated. The shelf does not necessarily get shorter, which is why consolidation is happening right under our noses, often unnoticed. Full interview linked in the comments. Many thanks, Jürgen Müller for having me. FashionSIGHTS #FutureOfFashion
linkedin July 2026 Can UNIQLO crack the US and Europe?
That was one of the questions I discussed with Harry Dempsey, Tokyo correspondent for the Financial Times. His latest FT Big Read explores Uniqlo’s ambition to become a dominant force in global fashion. While Uniqlo remains exceptionally strong in its Japanese home market, the brand has recently seen impressive growth in both Europe and North America. With its proposition of offering high-quality wardrobe essentials at an affordable price point, Uniqlo’s recent rise has also benefited from broader shifts toward modesty and quiet luxury. The question now is how much more value the brand can create before that momentum begins to fade. Uniqlo’s ambition to lead in global fashion are nothing new. In 2008, Uniqlo set the goal of becoming the world’s No. 1 apparel retailer by 2020. In 2017, Fast Retailing CEO Tadashi Yanai stated that the company would overtake industry leader Zara. Even though the brand has not fully achieved those targets yet, the scale of its accomplishments becomes clearer when looking at the numbers. Around 85% of Fast Retailing’s revenue comes from Uniqlo, and between 2008 and 2025, the company grew at a CAGR of 11%, increasing revenue from approximately $3.9 billion to $22.7 billion. Over the same period, H&M and Zara grew at around 6% and 8% CAGR, respectively. Uniqlo is slowly but steadily closing the gap with its European rivals. Whether it can translate its success into true leadership in Western markets remains one of the most interesting questions in global fashion retail. Thank you, Harry Dempsey, for featuring me and our FashionSIGHTS analysis in the article. You can find the link to the FT Big Read in the comments. Source: Finacial Times, FashionSIGHTS analytics
