The smart clothing market in Europe is expected to grow from US$ 325.08 million in 2019 to US$ 1,861.24 million by 2027; it is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 24.7% from 2020 to 2027.
Smart textiles have garnered significant popularity in the area of healthcare and related domains because the fabric is in direct contact with its wearer's skin, owing to which it offers the most primary access to non-vital or vital body parameters. In fitness and sports applications, smart fabrics can replace attached or worn sensor devices. The most basic use is to monitor the wearer’s vital data, such as heartbeat, ECG, carotid pulse, respiration, breathing pattern, skin temperature, skin impedance, and physical activity, during normal daily activities. This allows empowering individuals to manage their healthcare needs, thereby promoting preventive healthcare (from illness diagnosis to wellness monitoring). Smart clothing will have a critical application in remote control of chronically ill patients or those undergoing rehabilitation, especially in telemedical applications. With active materials, recovery can be supported by movement detection, correction, or medication administered through the skin. With the rising adoption of smart clothing by healthcare sector the market is expected witness growth opportunities in forth-coming future.
Based on connectivity, the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is projected to create highest growth opportunities in Europe smart clothing market in 2019. As radio frequency identification (RFID) can be read over a distance of a few meters by reader devices, and the technology features accuracy rates of up to 99%. RFID tags have made their way into fashion items in the form of paper hangtags, textile tags stitched in collars, buttons on sleeves, and lasting card pressed into shoe soles; the technology allows fashion items interact with anyone, including consumers. Avery Dennison provides labels, care tags, and other items to several major apparel and footwear brands, including Nike, Under Armour, and Hugo Boss. The company also furnishes RFID tags for inventory tracking for several companies, including Marks and Spencer. The tags and sensors are mostly used in shirts, nanomaterial-based reinforced textiles, and power-generating shirts.
The COVID-19 pandemic has hampered the economic stability and growth in Europe. Italy and Spain are the most hit countries in Europe due to the COVID-19 outbreak. To curb the spread of coronavirus, the governments across Europe initiated various actions, such as travel bans, businesses and factories shutdowns, and lockdowns. However, these measure did affect the anticipated revenue generation and growth opportunities. Meanwhile, western European countries, such as Germany, France, the UK, have witnessed a comparatively moderate decline in their demand for various essential services including smart clothing, owing to robust healthcare infrastructure. The outbreak of virus is expected to continue negatively impacting the market and virtually disrupt the market growth across selected countries during the coming few months.
The overall Europe smart clothing market size has been derived using both primary and secondary sources. To begin the research process, exhaustive secondary research has been conducted using internal and external sources to obtain qualitative and quantitative information related to the market. The process also serves the purpose of obtaining overview and forecast for the Europe smart clothing market with respect to all the segments pertaining to the region. Also, multiple primary interviews have been conducted with industry participants and commentators to validate the data, as well as to gain more analytical insights into the topic. The participants who typically take part in such a process include industry experts, such as VPs, business development managers, market intelligence managers, and national sales managers, along with external consultants, such as valuation experts, research analysts, and key opinion leaders specializing in the Europe smart clothing market. CUTECIRCUIT, Google LLC, Jabil Inc., Myontec Ltd, and Under Armour, Inc. are among a few players operating in the Europe smart clothing market.