Colour by numbers: The unstoppable rise of pink

WGSN explains why hot pink is here to stay, as evidenced by our proprietary catwalk and e-commerce data.

In August, we declared pink is the future as shades of pink were up 138% YoY for A/W 22/23. WGSN’s Head of Colour Urangoo Samba followed up with Business of Fashion, offering proprietary data to back up our analysis. Here are the highlights.

All things pink

According to our Catwalk Analytics: Print & Colour A/W 22/23, pink is an emerging colour, claiming 5.5% of the colour mix for A/W 22/23. Three of the five fastest-rising colours for the season are pinks, with hyper-pink accounting for +201% at 1.6% of the colour mix, double the previous A/W (0.9%).

Pink has hovered between 8% and 9.5% of womenswear for the past four years from 2019. Although seasonality typically peaks in summer, the colour saw a slight uptick in A/W 21/22. It is currently on a slow growth trend that is projected to continue in S/S 23. In TrendCurve Colour Spotlight: US Women’s Pink Apparel S/S 23 WGSN identifies pink apparel as a Slow Riser in the US, where it is expected to increase by 4ppt in 2023.

After a year of decline, brights made a comeback in late 2021. This growth is projected to sustain into S/S 23, when warm tones are forecast at 24.2%.

The graph below from the same report tracks the colour mix of pink across the fashion seasons. As seen, pink took a 2ppt dip in S/S 22, but was revitalised on the A/W 22/23 catwalks, where bright pink pieces doubled YoY. This momentum is expected to continue into S/S 23.

Longevity of pink

The colour also has legs beyond the catwalks. According to WGSN e-commerce data, pink holds a 2% share of the total mix. Although small, the colour shows growth in new-ins YoY (+46% UK, +38% US). In the US the growth is driven by mass (+96% YoY) and trend-led segments (+50% YoY), while in the UK the growth comes from mass (+106% YoY) and luxury segments (+44% YoY).

WGSN subscribers can continue to explore the future of pink and other colours in Colour Evolution A/W 24/25.