Fashion Brands and Emerging Markets’ Opportunities: A Literature Review from a Consumer Behaviour and Marketing Perspective

This chapter investigates current issues and opportunities for fashion brands in emerging markets. A systematic literature review conducted within the past decade (2010–2020) on academic research in the marketing field was carried out to identify the most prominent topics, highlighting the main findings of extensive study and implications for marketers from a consumer behaviour perspective. Results have mainly shed light on four issues: fashion consumption in emerging markets, luxury consumption, the perception of fashion products in the emerging markets (EMs) and African inspiration. The current study highlights the need to consider emerging countries as new markets for the most influential fashion brands, as in the case of the emerging New Middle Class (NMC) made by their specific characteristics. Indeed, such emerging markets should be recognised as markets in which fashion brand managers and designers acquire new inspirations for their brands by leveraging the consumers’ values and lifestyles, as in one of the most promising continents such as Africa. Finally, the role of marketing strategies in approaching such markets and consumers is discussed, together with implications for companies to consider these consumers’ actual needs and specificities.