Consumer Behavior

A Tale of Two Pandemics: A Pilot Study on COVID-19 Restrictions and Apparel Sales Growth in California and Texas

---

Abstract

COVID-19 has impacted retailing, as the industry shed 2.8 million jobs in 2020 and is still realizing a deficit. Retail sales dropped 10.3% in the fashion sector in 2020 and an average of 91% of shoppers have modified how they shop. This research investigates retail apparel sales in 10 categories for two US states during the COVID-19 pandemic. California and Texas were selected for this study, as they have large consumer populations and differing COVID restrictions. Pandemic restriction data was gathered and sales data was provided by Earnest research. YOY sales growth for each state across 10 apparel – related categories between March 2020 and March 2021 were analyzed with pandemic restrictions. Texas placed less restrictions on apparel businesses than California and saw less declines in YOY growth across all apparel– related sectors.

Keywords: COVID, pandemic, retail sales, retail closures, retail categories

How to Cite:

Dorie, A. & Loranger, D. P., (2022) “A Tale of Two Pandemics: A Pilot Study on COVID-19 Restrictions and Apparel Sales Growth in California and Texas”, International Textile and Apparel Association Annual Conference Proceedings 78(1). doi: https://doi.org/10.31274/itaa.13292