Complementing traditional fundamental data, alternative data enriches investors’ workflow and equips analysts with insights into company performance and consumer trends. More specifically, consumer transaction data analytics offer a direct view into a company’s observed transactions, which in turn gives a read into important revenue and KPIs across a broad segment of industries.
Bloomberg Second Measure is a leading provider of consumer transaction data solutions powered by billions of U.S. consumer credit card and debit card transactions. The data is available via data feeds or as the flagship dataset of the ALTD <GO> function on the Bloomberg Terminal. This article will explore how Bloomberg Second Measure data analytics enhances the investment research process by highlighting how investors can monitor changes in market share, track sales growth by purchase channel or new vs. returning shoppers, and identify disruptors within consumer-focused industries like fast fashion.
Case Study
SHEIN leads fast fashion market share in the U.S.
Bloomberg Second Measure’s aggregated data feed product enables investors to dive into transaction data analytics for 4,100+ public and private companies and brands. Bloomberg Second Measure data analytics show that during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Chinese e-commerce company SHEIN vastly increased its observed U.S. share of sales among major fast fashion competitors such as H&M, Fashion Nova, Uniqlo, Forever 21, ASOS, and Zara. SHEIN has maintained its lead in the U.S. fast fashion market through the first quarter of 2024, with its gains largely coming at the expense of H&M, Forever 21, and Fashion Nova.
Source: Bloomberg Second Measure LLC
Most sales at omnichannel fast fashion companies come from stores
While several fast fashion companies operate entirely online, others see a mix of online and retail sales. Purchase channel data from Bloomberg Second Measure’s data feed shows that observed U.S. sales at H&M, Zara, Uniqlo, and Forever 21 shifted online at the height of pandemic lockdowns in early 2020, but then mostly returned to retail by that summer. Among these companies, Zara has the highest share of its U.S. observed sales originating from the online channel in the post-COVID era.
Source: Bloomberg Second Measure LLC
SHEIN’s product mix has expanded beyond fast fashion–and so has its competition
In mid-2023, SHEIN expanded its marketplace offerings to include non-fashion categories, such as home goods, appliances, and electronics. Around the same time, new e-commerce competitors Temu (owned by PDD Holdings Inc) and TikTok Shop (owned by Bytedance Ltd) entered the U.S. market. Bloomberg Second Measure data analytics show that since their launch, Temu and TikTok Shop have grown their U.S. market share significantly compared to SHEIN.
Source: Bloomberg Second Measure LLC
Despite remarkable growth in recent years, observed U.S. consumer spending at SHEIN, Temu, and TikTok Shop combined remains relatively small compared to Amazon.
Source: Bloomberg Second Measure LLC
SHEIN’s observed customer counts–both new and returning–have been declining year-over-year
The ALTD <GO> function on the Bloomberg Terminal®, powered by Bloomberg Second Measure’s consumer transaction data analytics and available at no additional cost to Terminal subscribers, facilitates use cases from idea generation to deep fundamental analysis like spend by new vs. returning customers. The new vs. returning customers filter on ALTD <GO> shows that SHEIN experienced a strong spike in year-over-year customer counts from both new and returning shoppers during the peak of the COVID pandemic, but that growth has since decelerated–coinciding both with many shoppers returning to stores and with the rise of other ultra low-cost ecommerce competitors.
Source: Bloomberg Finance L.P. – ALTD <GO>
Additionally, ALTD <GO> data shows that the observed average transaction value at SHEIN was similar for both new and returning customers prior to the pandemic, but new customers outspent returning customers from mid-2021 through 2022.
Source: Bloomberg Finance L.P. – ALTD <GO>
To learn more about alternative data at Bloomberg, please email bsmsupport@bloomberg.net.
The data included in these materials are for illustrative purposes only. The Bloomberg Second Measure services are made available by Bloomberg Second Measure LLC (“BBSM”). BBSM’s parent company, Bloomberg L.P. (“BLP”), provides BBSM with global marketing and operational support. Nothing in the Services shall constitute or be construed as an offering of financial instruments by BBSM, BLP or their affiliates, or as investment advice or recommendations by BBSM, BLP or their affiliates of an investment strategy or whether or not to “buy”, “sell” or “hold” an investment. BLOOMBERG, BLOOMBERG SECOND MEASURE, BLOOMBERG TERMINAL, BLOOMBERG PROFESSIONAL, BLOOMBERG MARKETS, BLOOMBERG NEWS, BLOOMBERG TRADEBOOK, BLOOMBERG BONDTRADER, BLOOMBERG TELEVISION, BLOOMBERG RADIO, BLOOMBERG.COM and BLOOMBERG ANYWHERE are trademarks and service marks of Bloomberg Finance L.P., a Delaware limited partnership, or its subsidiaries. Absence of any trademark or service mark from this list does not waive Bloomberg Finance L.P.’s or its affiliates’ intellectual property rights in that name, mark or logo. All rights reserved. © 2024 Bloomberg.