US online sales of luxury fashion items are showing significant growth in key segments – footwear, accessories, and apparel. Much of the nearly 50 per cent increase in dollar sales seen in recent years across these segments is attributed to an increase in buyer spending.

Luxury market is evolving, new brands are getting attention, and online retailer platforms are elevating the competitive landscape. The younger, multi-ethnic demographic that is more attracted to purchasing designer products online – even more than the average online accessories, footwear, or apparel buyer – is a major contributor to this evolution.

The biggest spending increase within the online luxury market comes from apparel – growing 17 per cent. While the frequency of online purchases held steady for luxury apparel and fashion accessories both segments saw increases in the amount consumers spent on those purchases. Fashion accessories increased their average online luxury spend per buyer by five per cent.

Nearly half of online luxury fashion dollar sales come from footwear, which has the highest average annual spend per buyer and annual purchase frequency. The average online luxury footwear spend increased four per cent and purchase frequency also increased slightly to 1.6 times per year.