Victoria’s Secret, Sephora and Nike are the top brands favored by US shoppers. And what contributes to these brands success is their online presence. Among men, Amazon was voted the favorite retailer across all categories, and it was the top shopping app for women. More than one-third of US apparel shopping is conducted online. These are the results of a study, which looked at trends in fashion, retail and beauty categories based on a national sample of 2,345 US consumers aged 13 to 34.

The US apparel market is seeing a dramatic shift to online that has caught many traditional retailers off guard. Mall-based specialty chains and department stores have begun to give up large chunks of their clothing and accessories business to Amazon and other pure play merchants.

The creation and implementation of more sophisticated online platforms such as product aggregators, pricing tools, geo-fencing, augmented reality, body scanning and other capabilities will further accelerate the shift, making it easier for consumers to shop online.

Older millennials (aged 25 to 34) are more likely than any other generation to spend most of their clothing budget online. At its current rate, the online penetration of apparel will grow to 25 per cent by 2020, double the level at the close of 2015.