Finnish consumers are buying more clothing items in 2025, but they are spending less money overall. New data from the Finnish Fashion and Sports Commerce Association shows that shopping habits have shifted, with people choosing cheaper items or discount products instead of spending on higher-value purchases.
Between January and July, the number of clothing items purchased rose by 1.2 percent, but the total sales value went down by 1 percent. Fashion clothing sales fell by 1.6 percent in value, while footwear sales dropped by 5.1 percent. The figures reveal that shoppers are looking for affordability rather than style-driven purchases.
The sports retail sector shows the same pattern. Sportswear purchases increased by 13.5 percent in quantity but grew only 0.5 percent in value. Sports footwear sales rose 16 percent in quantity and 7.4 percent in value. Despite strong volumes, overall sports retail revenue declined. The main reason was the sudden collapse in bicycle sales.
The turning point came in March when the Finnish government announced the end of the tax benefit for employer-provided bicycles starting January 2026. The announcement caused an immediate fall in demand. By the end of July, electric bicycle sales had dropped 34.5 percent. According to Veli-Matti Kankaanpää, Managing Director of the Finnish Fashion and Sports Commerce Association, the crash in bicycle sales pulled the whole equipment trade into negative figures. He said many retailers are now clearing stock, and the slowdown will continue to affect the market into next year.
Online purchases from outside the EU highlight another shift. Clothing bought from non-EU platforms decreased by 1 percent in value but rose by 1 percent in quantity during the first half of the year. Footwear purchases from abroad grew both in value and volume, rising 5 percent and 14 percent.
Chinese online retailers now dominate this sector. Imports from China made up 98 percent of clothing purchases by volume and 91 percent by value. Between January and June, Finnish consumers bought 3.1 million clothing items from Chinese webshops, which represented 10.4 percent of all clothing purchases in Finland during that time. Kankaanpää stressed that this is no longer a marginal trend, noting that EU-based online platforms are losing ground. He also called for Chinese retailers to meet the same product responsibility and waste management standards as local businesses.
Second-hand clothing is also showing signs of weakness. Compared with January to August 2024, sales of used clothing declined by 2 percent in value and dropped 15 percent in quantity.
