Britons spend more on fashion than the French, says report

British fashion shoppers rank eighth on a list of heavy spending consumers in Europe with £1,000 spent annually on clothing and shoes on average, according to an article in Fashion Network reporting on figures obtained from EU statistics agency Eurostat.

Ranking above the UK are Estonia, Portugal, Italy, Austria, Lithuania, Latvia and Luxembourg.  

Putting UK eighth position at the top third of a list of 26 countries, the UK is also ranked much higher than French shoppers who are often regarded as more fashion-concerned.  

The French reportedly spend £600 a year but rank 23rd on the list, above only Hungary, the Czech Republic and Bulgaria.

The gap between neighbouring British and France has widened in the past decade with Britons spending 5.6% of their household budgets on fashion in 2016, which was 0.5% higher than in 2006. The French at the same time spent 3.8% of their household budgets, a fall of 0.8% over the same 10-year period.

Of course, a lot of what Britons buy goes unworn.  The article also pointed out that according to a recent survey by Weight Watchers showed that UK women and men have around £10 billion of unworn clothing in their drawers and wardrobes, or around £200 per adult.