Press release

3^rdJuly 2017

Maternity Fashion Disappearing From The UK High Street, Study Finds

Shopping for maternity fashion on the UK high street may soon be a thing of the past.

A recent study by UK shopping portalFind Opendiscovered that more and more high street retailers are moving their maternity ranges exclusively online - and many have dropped maternity altogether.

The research, which took place in June this year, focused on 6 major high street retailers in 20 of the UK's largest cities, and found that:
 
 

• 4 of the retailers did not stock maternity in any of their stores

• The other 2 retailers had a total of just 15 stores (combined) which stocked maternity clothes suitable for a special occasion

• 3 of those 15 stores had just one dress in stock

The study was triggered by the experiences of Find Open team memberLindsay McSweeney (26)who recently attempted to source a maternity dress for a wedding.
 

"I was invited to attend a wedding in May this year. At the time I was a little over 5 months pregnant and when I tried a few outfits from my wardrobe, I realised that I would definitely need a new dress for the day."
 

Lindsay was unable to find a suitable dress in either Inverness or Glasgow - with the latter being Scotland's largest city and considered one of the UK's premier shopping destinations.
 

"I live in the Scottish Highlands, and the closest town to me is Inverness. I spent a frustrating day trying to find a dress without any luck - there was only one store that had any maternity clothes, and nothing was suitable for a wedding. A trip to Glasgow a few days later was equally uninspiring, and in the end I had to borrow a dress from a friend."
 

Find Open contacted 6 major high street retailers currently stocking maternity fashion online - New Look, Topshop, Next, Marks & Spencer, Dorothy Perkins, and GAP.
 

New Look and Topshop were the only 2 retailers who stocked maternity wear in any of their stores.

Researching further, they contacted 74 New Look stores and 37 Topshop stores directly, and discovered that:
 
 

• New Look stocked maternity wear in 22 of the stores contacted (30%), while Top Shop stocked maternity wear in 24 (65%)

• 8 New Look stores had dresses suitable for special occasions, while the rest stocked casual wear only

• 7 Topshop stores had dresses suitable for special occasions, while the rest stocked casual wear only

2 of the Topshop stores, and 1 New Look store had a single dress in stock, while many other stores commented that they had ‘two or three dresses' available.
 

While completing the research, Find Open gathered online feedback from some of the UK's 750,000+ expectant mothers.

Find Open CEO Francisc Osvald reportsthat "Many commenters lamented the poor availability of maternity fashion on the high street, while others stated that not being able to try on clothes prior to purchase was a particular inconvenience due to their changing body shape."
 

"We also discovered that several major high street retailers, including Primark and Zara, appear to have completely discontinued their maternity ranges - both in store and online. This appears to have been a recent move."
 

According to Francisc, New Look and H&M received the most positive feedback for their in store maternity ranges.
 

"New Look and H&M were the most recommended retailers for maternity shopping in store. There were also lots of positive comments about ASOS' online range of maternity wear."
 

Find Open approached each of the retailers included in the study for comment. A spokesperson for Marks and Spencer stated that:

"Our maternity range is online only, as we have found that is how our customers prefer to shop the range."
 

The full details of the study can be foundhere.

-- ENDS --

Notes to editors

Cities In Study:Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Sheffield, Bradford, Manchester, Edinburgh, Liverpool, Bristol, Cardiff, Belfast, Leicester, Wakefield, Coventry, Nottingham, Newcastle, Sunderland, Brighton & Hove, Kingston Upon Hull, Plymouth

New Look stores stocking maternity wear for special occasions:Glasgow (Fort), Manchester (Fort), Edinburgh (Craigleith), Liverpool (Paradise Street), Cardiff (Talbot Green), Coventry (Lower Precinct), Nottingham (Listergate), Newcastle (Team Valley Trading Estate)

Topshop stores stocking maternity wear for special occasions:Birmingham (New Bull Ring Centre), Leeds (Briggate), Liverpool (Church Street), Bristol (Brigstow Street), Belfast (Victoria Square), Leicester (Highcross), Nottingham (Victoria Centre)

Reddit discussion with comments athttps://www.reddit.com/r/BabyBumps/comments/6hf6aj/lack_of_maternity_wear_on_the_high_street/

For further information please contact David McSweeney by email surround@gmail.com
 

About Find Open

Find-Open.co.uk is a leading online shopping and retail portal, which features opening hours, directions, and contact details for all major retail stores in the UK.