Shirt Market - Global Industry Size, Share, Trends, Opportunity, and Forecast, 2021-2031

The Global Shirt Market is projected to expand from USD 82.08 Billion in 2025 to USD 105.85 Billion by 2031, reflecting a CAGR of 4.33%. This sector covers the design and retail of upper-body apparel, ranging from formal woven business shirts to casual knitted T-shirts. Key factors driving this growth include rising disposable incomes in emerging economies, which enable higher consumer spending, and rapid urbanization that demands versatile clothing suitable for both professional and social settings. Additionally, the steady growth of the global corporate workforce ensures consistent demand for traditional business attire and smart casual options, maintaining a manufacturing cycle that persists independently of temporary fashion trends.

Despite these positive drivers, the industry faces significant challenges due to volatile raw material costs, which disrupt pricing structures and reduce manufacturer profit margins. This financial instability is frequently worsened by supply chain delays in major production centers, leading to shipment lags and increased overheads. Illustrating the scale of trade in this sector, the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Textiles reported that China's export value for T-shirts and sweatshirts reached 85.29 billion US dollars in the first three quarters of 2024, highlighting the massive capital flow in the casual apparel segment despite broader economic pressures.

Market Drivers

The rapid growth of e-commerce and mobile retail is fundamentally transforming the Global Shirt Market by removing geographical barriers and improving consumer access. Digital platforms now provide advanced features like AI-based sizing tools and seamless return policies, which encourage frequent purchases of both formal and casual shirts while allowing brands to engage directly with customers and speed up inventory turnover. This strong digital shift is exemplified by Inditex, which reported in its 'Full Year 2024 Results' from March 2025 that online sales rose by 12 percent, reaching €10.2 billion in 2024.

Concurrently, increasing consumer demand for ethical and sustainable apparel is driving manufacturers to overhaul supply chains in favor of eco-friendly materials and transparent labor practices. As shoppers prioritize items made from organic cotton or recycled fibers, major labels are adopting circular economy principles to remain competitive. This industry-wide shift is evident in corporate sustainability achievements; for instance, H&M Group's 'Annual and Sustainability Report 2024', released in March 2025, noted that 89 percent of their materials were recycled or sustainably sourced. Furthermore, the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association reported in 2025 that the sector’s export turnover reached $44 billion for the year 2024, illustrating the substantial manufacturing volume supporting this global trade.

Market Challenges

Fluctuating raw material costs present a significant obstacle to the stability and growth of the Global Shirt Market. The volatility in prices for essential inputs, such as cotton and synthetic fibers, creates a risky planning environment for manufacturers who depend on consistent pricing to sustain viable profit margins. When input costs rise unexpectedly, producers often absorb the financial impact to remain competitive, as the price-sensitive nature of the mass apparel market limits their ability to pass these increases on to consumers. Consequently, this reduction in profitability restricts the capital available for operational scaling and essential reinvestment.

According to the International Textile Manufacturers Federation, 36% of global survey participants in 2024 identified high raw material prices as a major business concern, indicating a significant rise in anxiety regarding input stability compared to earlier in the year. This uncertainty compels companies to adopt conservative inventory strategies, often delaying production cycles or reducing output volumes to limit financial exposure. Such defensive measures ultimately slow overall market expansion by creating inefficiencies and restricting the volume of goods entering the retail chain.

Market Trends

The rise of hybrid workwear and smart casual designs is significantly reshaping global product assortments as traditional formal dress codes continue to decline. Consumers are increasingly favoring a "power casual" aesthetic that combines professional polish with comfort, preferring versatile items like premium knit polos and unstructured button-downs over rigid business attire. This sustained demand for elevated, multi-functional wardrobe staples is evident in the financial performance of leading heritage brands; for instance, Ralph Lauren Corporation reported in its 'Fourth Quarter and Full Year Fiscal 2025 Results' from May 2025 that annual revenue reached 7.08 billion dollars, representing a 7 percent increase compared to the prior year.

Simultaneously, the growth of on-demand and made-to-order manufacturing is gaining traction as producers seek to mitigate inventory risks and cater to preferences for knitted comfort. Manufacturers are aggressively upgrading infrastructure with advanced machinery capable of seamless and complex production, which facilitates shorter lead times and reduces fabric waste compared to traditional cut-and-sew methods. This strategic shift toward agile production technologies is quantified by recent global investment patterns; according to the International Textile Manufacturers Federation's 'International Textile Machinery Shipment Statistics (ITMSS) 47/2024' from June 2025, global shipments of electronic flat knitting machines increased by 16 percent to reach 135,000 units in 2024.

Key Players Profiled in the Shirt Market

• Brooks Brothers Group, Inc.
• PVH Corp.
• Hugo Boss AG
• Ralph Lauren Corporation
• Giorgio Armani S.p.A.
• Burberry Group PLC
• H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB
• Levi Strauss & Co.
• Raymond Group
• Bestseller Handels B.V.

Report Scope

In this report, the Global Shirt Market has been segmented into the following categories:

Shirt Market, by Material:

• Cotton
• Silk
• Linen

Shirt Market, by Distribution Channel:

• Offline
• Online

Shirt Market, by Region:

• North America
• Europe
• Asia-Pacific
• South America
• Middle East & Africa

Competitive Landscape

Company Profiles: Detailed analysis of the major companies present in the Global Shirt Market.

Available Customization

The analyst offers customization according to your specific needs. The following customization options are available for the report:

• Detailed analysis and profiling of additional market players (up to five).

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