Mid-market squeezed in struggling frames market

Q311 has seen value sales in the spectacle frames market decline by 9.3 per cent as compared to Q310. The decline suggests hard pressed consumers have been increasingly looking to reduce expenditure in the category, the methods available to do this being either delaying purchases or buying a cheaper product.

With frame volumes down in the quarter by 6.4 per cent and average price down by 3.1 per cent to £66.05 the numbers would suggest both the aforementioned approaches are being employed by consumers.

Within the frames market the trends show an element of price polarization as despite the overall decline in both volume and average price the top end of the market records a volume increase in Q311 against the previous year while the mid-market has declined sharply. Frames priced from £200 – £250 have grown volumes by 1.4 per cent while frames priced £250+ have grown by 26.1 per cent. Meanwhile the mid-market of frames priced £100 - £200 has experienced volume declines of 16.1 per cent over the same period, well ahead of the total market rate of volume decline which stands at 6.4 per cent. Frames priced £100 and under slightly outperform the market though still show volumes in decline at 4.9 per cent.