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Saudi Arabia’s Fashion Industry Valued at $24 Billion in Q1 2024

Visitors are seen at an exhibition organized by the Saudi Fashion Commission in Riyadh in March. (SPA)
Visitors are seen at an exhibition organized by the Saudi Fashion Commission in Riyadh in March. (SPA)
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Saudi Arabia’s Fashion Industry Valued at $24 Billion in Q1 2024

Visitors are seen at an exhibition organized by the Saudi Fashion Commission in Riyadh in March. (SPA)
Visitors are seen at an exhibition organized by the Saudi Fashion Commission in Riyadh in March. (SPA)

The total value of the fashion industry in Saudi Arabia reached SAR 92.3 billion ($24.6 billion) during the first quarter of 2024, with local fashion accounting for SAR 46.9 billion ($12.5 billion), according to a report by the General Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises (Monsha’at).

The value of spending on imported brands amounted to SAR 27.4 billion ($7.3 billion), increasing the expected cumulative growth of the fashion sector by 48 percent between 2021 and 2025.

In its report for the first quarter of 2024, Monsha’at highlighted the importance of the fashion sector in the Kingdom and the great investment opportunities available to entrepreneurs.

In his opening letter of the report, CEO of the Fashion Commission Burak Cakmak said the future of fashion in Saudi Arabia will witness further progress and prosperity thanks to the Kingdom’s designers and the visions of its entrepreneurs that will leave an impact on the global fashion scene.

The report featured an interview with Saud Al-Sabhan, Deputy Governor for Entrepreneurship at Monsha’at, who emphasized the Authority’s role in supporting entrepreneurs and owners of SMEs through various programs and initiatives.

CEO and Founder of MAGNiTT Philip Bahoshy said the Kingdom continued to excel in the volume of venture capital investments at the beginning of 2024, with investments worth a total of SAR 900 million ($240 million).

He added that Saudi Arabia has the largest share of the volume of venture capital investments in the Middle East and North Africa region, at 65 percent.

The report reviewed success stories of male and female entrepreneurs in the field, including Princess Deemah bint Mansour bin Saud al-Saud, the founder of Personage, designer Mohammed Khoja, co-founder of Hindamme, and others.

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Fashion

Zara Owner Inditex Reports Strong August Trading Amid Heatwaves

A Zara logo is displayed on the facade of a store of the brand, owned by Spanish fashion retailer Inditex in London, Britain, September 2, 2026. (Reuters)
A Zara logo is displayed on the facade of a store of the brand, owned by Spanish fashion retailer Inditex in London, Britain, September 2, 2026. (Reuters)
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Zara Owner Inditex Reports Strong August Trading Amid Heatwaves

A Zara logo is displayed on the facade of a store of the brand, owned by Spanish fashion retailer Inditex in London, Britain, September 2, 2026. (Reuters)
A Zara logo is displayed on the facade of a store of the brand, owned by Spanish fashion retailer Inditex in London, Britain, September 2, 2026. (Reuters)

Zara owner Inditex reported a better-than-expected start to its autumn trading on Wednesday, with currency-adjusted sales up 9% in August, even as extreme heat across Europe reshapes shopping behavior in its biggest market.

The fast-fashion giant made €11 billion ($12.8 billion) in sales in its second quarter running May to July, a strong showing in a summer of high energy prices and weak ‌consumer sentiment amid ‌the ongoing Iran war.

"These excellent results ‌highlight ⁠the extraordinary capabilities of ⁠our teams," CEO Oscar Garcia Maceiras said in a statement, adding that it was operating in a "highly complex global environment."

Inditex is flying high: its share price hit a record of €59.1 last month, and the Hong Kong IPO filings of ultra-cheap fashion platform Shein revealed ⁠a sales slowdown, evidence that the competitive pressure ‌on European fast-fashion groups ‌like Zara and H&M is easing.

The Spanish company is expanding ‌its cheapest brand, Lefties, into Britain, with plans to ‌open in Germany next year, as Inditex tries to capture more spending from lower-income shoppers who may have been alienated by Zara's push into higher price points.

Inditex's gross profit grew 8.3% ‌in the first half to €11.6 billion, with a gross margin of 58.7%.

Retailers in ⁠Europe and the US are having to change their sourcing schedules to adapt to hot weather that is stretching into the back-to-school season when stores usually start selling jackets and coats.

Western Europe had its hottest June and July on record, according to European Union scientists, as climate change pushes temperatures up and fuels wildfires across the region.

Inditex has been spending significantly on revamping stores and improving its logistics; RBC analysts estimate its annual capital expenditure is around three times that of its Swedish rival H&M.

Fashion

Naomi Osaka Exits US Open, but Not Before Displaying One More ‘Swaggy’ Fashion Ensemble

Naomi Osaka, of Japan, arrives for a match against Elena Rybakina, of Kazakhstan, during the fourth round of the US Open tennis championships, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026, in New York. (AP)
Naomi Osaka, of Japan, arrives for a match against Elena Rybakina, of Kazakhstan, during the fourth round of the US Open tennis championships, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026, in New York. (AP)
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Naomi Osaka Exits US Open, but Not Before Displaying One More ‘Swaggy’ Fashion Ensemble

Naomi Osaka, of Japan, arrives for a match against Elena Rybakina, of Kazakhstan, during the fourth round of the US Open tennis championships, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026, in New York. (AP)
Naomi Osaka, of Japan, arrives for a match against Elena Rybakina, of Kazakhstan, during the fourth round of the US Open tennis championships, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026, in New York. (AP)

Naomi Osaka may not have gone out of the US Open with much of a bang. But she surely went out with a burst — of color, and a bit of swag.

The two-time US Open champion lost a lopsided fourth-round match on Monday to Elena Rybakina. But she continued to make her mark as the undisputed fashion queen on tour.

Osaka, already known for her walk-on fashion reveals at tournaments, has been upping her game at the year's final major with a series of dramatic ensembles — all with a basketball theme, as her sponsor, Nike, honors the New York Knicks' championship win.

For her last look, she arrived on court Monday in a coat of many colors: a fur-trimmed cloak designed by Brooklyn-based label KidSuper.

“I felt really swaggy when I put it on," Osaka said after the match. “I feel like it embodied New York a lot."

For her increasingly dramatic looks the past week or so, Osaka has worked with celebrity stylist Law Roach — also known as Zendaya's stylist — displaying the work of multiple designers.

Monday's eclectic walk-on ensemble from KidSuper, the label of designer Colm Dillane, included not only the lavish coat, but a headband that echoed the blue, red and white NBA logo — only now, displaying a racket-wielding tennis player, not a basketball player.

For her first-round match a week ago, Osaka channeled NBA great Allen Iverson in a long, white tulle skirt and a dramatic gray, hooded robe. When she removed the hood, Osaka's hair was in cornrows under a headband, recalling Iverson's look when was the NBA MVP while playing for the Philadelphia 76ers. Her ensemble was designed by Who Decides War, the New York-based streetwear brand.

For round two, Osaka arrived on court in an ensemble by Thom Browne, with a flowing white jacket embroidered with crossed tennis rackets. Underneath, her tennis skirt's mesh fabric resembled a basketball net.

For the third round, Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion, wore the label Monse — an oversized hybrid of a gray suit jacket and hoodie sweatshirt over flowing gray fleece pants, an outfit meant to mesh business wear with sports wear.

After her loss Monday, Osaka was asked if she was disappointed that there may have been other fashion looks she'd been planning to display, had she remained longer.

“I mean, I think there’s always something, you know?” Osaka said. “I feel like that’s a way that I can have fun and sort of just excite myself, also.”

But the 28-year-old — who noted that she’d been hampered during Monday' match by pain in her leg — was philosophical about her loss.

“Maybe I’m just getting older, but I don’t feel sad,” Osaka said. “I think, also, if I reflect on my career and the things that I’ve been able to do, there’s nothing that I regret or there’s nothing that I’m sad about ... If I win another Grand Slam, it’s not going to change my life.”

Fashion

Lululemon Forecast Cut Hits Shares, Underscores Challenge for Next CEO

FILE PHOTO: A logo is displayed inside a Lululemon outlet retail store at Bicester Village in Oxfordshire, Britain, August 21, 2024. REUTERS/Hollie Adams/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A logo is displayed inside a Lululemon outlet retail store at Bicester Village in Oxfordshire, Britain, August 21, 2024. REUTERS/Hollie Adams/File Photo
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Lululemon Forecast Cut Hits Shares, Underscores Challenge for Next CEO

FILE PHOTO: A logo is displayed inside a Lululemon outlet retail store at Bicester Village in Oxfordshire, Britain, August 21, 2024. REUTERS/Hollie Adams/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A logo is displayed inside a Lululemon outlet retail store at Bicester Village in Oxfordshire, Britain, August 21, 2024. REUTERS/Hollie Adams/File Photo

Shares of Lululemon Athletica fell about 18% in premarket trading on Friday after the sportswear maker cut its full-year forecast for a second time, underscoring the hurdles awaiting incoming CEO Heidi O'Neill.

Lululemon, known for its high-priced stretchy pants and athletic tops, has been grappling with declining sales for several quarters as it seeks to recover from merchandising missteps, an overreliance on promotions and intensifying competition, Reuters reported.

The firm's shares fell ⁠to $100.1 premarket, and ⁠if losses hold, it would wipe out more than $2.5 billion from Lululemon's market value and deepen the stock's year-to-date decline to about 41.5%.

O'Neill, a former Nike executive who takes the helm on September 8, will ⁠be tasked with reviving demand in North America, Lululemon's largest market, and restoring growth.

Revenue in the Americas, the company's largest market, fell 8% in the second quarter, compared with a 1% increase a year earlier, as the firm struggles to reignite demand amid inflationary pressure on consumer spending.

Morgan Stanley said that sales could deteriorate further in the second half, ⁠with ⁠limited visibility on when demand might recover, raising the risk of continued pressure on margins.

Following the results, at least 12 brokerages lowered their price targets on the shares, with Piper Sandler setting the Street-low target of $80, according to data compiled by LSEG.

The company trades at about 11.50 times forward earnings, compared with ​20.76 for Nike ​and 13.41 for Adidas, according to LSEG data.