Fashion market research.

From apparel and footwear to accessories, sportswear and resale, we help fashion brands understand the shoppers and trends shaping demand - and turn that understanding into the collections, campaigns and strategies that sell. A sharper approach to fashion market research, with answers to your most difficult questions, even from the audiences others find hardest to reach.

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Who we work with

  • Shopper and consumer communities and panels
  • Trend and cultural insight studies
  • Collection, product and concept testing
  • Brand equity, positioning and pricing research
  • Path-to-purchase and shopper research
  • Brand, advertising and campaign effectiveness
  • Market sizing and opportunity identification across fashion categories and markets

Fashion market research that keeps pace with how people really shop

Fashion moves fast, and so do the people who buy it. We've spent years getting under the skin of shoppers across apparel, footwear and accessories, understanding the blend of taste, identity, value and influence that drives what they choose. From global fashion houses to fast-growing challengers, we help you spot trends early, test collections and concepts, sharpen brand and pricing, and understand the path to purchase across stores, social and online. Whatever the question, we connect the dots - turning consumer insight into the elevated decisions that move your brand forward.

Why choose Kadence for your fashion market research?

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Reaching the audiences others can't

Fashion shoppers, trendsetters and niche communities worldwide, including the hard-to-reach. We're known for excelling when other agencies stumble.

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Trend-fluent, not trend-chasing

We separate genuine shifts from noise, so you invest in the changes that last.

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Global reach, local understanding

With offices across the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific, we read style and taste through the right cultural lens in every market.

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Traditional methods, modern tools

Qualitative depth, quantitative scale and advanced analytics under one roof, including social and visual approaches.

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From data to decisions

Clear, decision-ready recommendations that shape collections and campaigns, not just data.

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The full path to purchase

We map how shoppers move across store, social and online, so you understand not just what they buy, but how and why.

Specific research approaches for luxury

  • Shopper and consumer communities and panels
  • Trend and cultural insight studies
  • Collection, product and concept testing
  • Brand equity, positioning and pricing research

  • Path-to-purchase and shopper research
  • Brand, advertising and campaign effectiveness
  • Market sizing and opportunity identification across fashion categories and markets
Our Results

Our mission is to raise the impact of research – and we're delivering

Kadence International Market Research Agency of the Year Singapore

Market Research Agency of the Year

Winner

— Agency of the Year Awards, 2019

Market Research Agency of the Year

Finalist

— Agency of the Year Awards, 2020
Quirks Supplier of the Year Kadence International

Market Research Supplier of the Year

Winner

— Marketing Research & Insight Excellence Awards – 2019
Kadence International is Highly Commended for Global Agency of The Year

Global Agency of the Year

Highly Commended

— Market Research Society Awards, 2019
MRS Opperations Awards Trophy

Best Training and Development

Highly Commended

— Market Research Society's Operations Awards, 2019

Best Data Collection (telephone)

Finalist

— Market Research Society's Operations Awards, 2019

Best Data Collection (face-to-face)

Finalist

— Market Research Society's Operations Awards – 2019

The global boutique for data and insight

Our global footprint makes us the go-to partner for international market research. We offer all qualitative and quantitative methodologies across our office network and beyond.
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We have been engaged with Kadence since 2016. Since our first partnership, Kadence has been instrumental in supporting our business efforts and have continuously proven their value in research, insights and analysis that have helped us to gain many wins. Kadence consistently pushes the boundaries and offer inspirations that provide deep business insights and drive business strategies.

Head of Research
Bloomberg

We’ve been working with Kadence on a couple of strategic projects, which influenced our product roadmap roll-out within the region. Their work has been exceptional in providing me the insights that I need.

Senior Marketing Executive
Arla Foods

Kadence were an excellent partner on this project; they took time to really understand our business challenges, and developed a research approach that would tackle the exam question from all directions.  The impact of the work is still being felt now, several years later.

Customer Intelligence Director
Wall Street Journal

Kadence has produced an exceptional body of work which plays a crucial part in planning marketing strategies and understanding the opportunities for our business as we continue to grow. We couldn’t ask for a better partner; they provided true expertise, valuable insights and commitment to quality across each project.

Performance Marketing Analytics Director
Treatwell

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Other sectors we serve

Our market research capabilities extend beyond education. With over 30 years of experience in market research, we have a wealth of expertise and in-depth knowledge across various sectors.

Whether you’re in retail, tech, healthcare, or food and beverage, Kadence applies the same level of dedication and insight to help you meet your unique objectives.

Fashion categories we specialize in

Apparel and footwear - we help clothing and footwear brands understand fit, taste and value across the collection and the calendar, from design to sell-through.

Accessories and bags - we research gifting, self-purchase and the role accessories play in expressing identity and entry into a brand.

Sportswear and activewear - we understand performance, lifestyle and the blurring line between sport and everyday wear.

Premium and designer fashion - we research the shoppers who trade up, what justifies the premium, and how aspiration converts to purchase.

Fast fashion and value - we help value and fast-fashion brands understand price sensitivity, speed and the trade-offs shoppers make.

Resale, rental and sustainable fashion - we research the fast-growing circular market and how shoppers really weigh sustainability against style and price.

Our approach to fashion research

Fashion shoppers are influenced by far more than the product in front of them, and trends move quickly. We combine qualitative depth and quantitative scale, draw on social, visual and cultural insight, and design studies around the realities of how people discover, consider and buy fashion. Through our global office network we run multi-market studies that read taste and value through the right cultural lens, bringing global reach with genuine local understanding.

What's shaping fashion research now

The fashion landscape is moving fast, from social commerce and the role of AI in personalization to the growth of resale and rental, and the ongoing tension between sustainability, value and the cost of living. We help brands stay ahead of these shifts with insight that connects what is changing to what to do about it.

Advertising
Advertising
Agriculture
Agriculture
Animal Health
Animal health
Automotive
Automotive
Consumer Goods
Consumer goods
Ecommerce
Ecommerce
Financial Services
Financial services
Food and beverage
Food and beverage
Kids and youth
Kids and youth
Media
Media
Technology
Technology
Telecommunications
Telecommunications

FAQs

What is fashion market research?

Fashion market research is how you build a clear picture of the shoppers, trends and influences shaping demand - so you can design, price, position and market collections that sell.

Why is market research important in the fashion industry?

Fashion is fast-moving, crowded and trend-led, with high stakes on every collection. Research removes the guesswork from design, buying, pricing and brand decisions, helping you back the trends and products that will genuinely land.

How do you keep up with fast-moving fashion trends?

We combine consumer communities, social and cultural insight and trend research to separate lasting shifts from short-lived noise, so you act on the changes that matter.

Which parts of the fashion industry do you work with?

Apparel and footwear, accessories, sportswear and activewear, premium and designer fashion, fast fashion and value, and resale, rental and sustainable fashion.

Which research methods do you use for fashion clients?

We combine qualitative and quantitative methods - communities and panels, in-depth interviews, surveys, product and concept testing, and advanced analytics - chosen to fit the question and the audience.

Can you run fashion research internationally?

Yes. Through our global office network we run multi-market fashion research, reading style, taste and value through the right cultural lens in each market.

How do you research sustainability in fashion?

We help brands understand how shoppers really weigh sustainability against price, style and convenience, cutting through stated intentions to what drives actual behavior.

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