Afterpay, the leader in “Buy Now, Pay Later” payments, today announced that it has partnered with several top fashion, apparel and beauty retailers in Canada, including Urban Outfitters, lululemon, Pandora and Shiseido (NARS, Laura Mercier, Cle de Peau, Shiseido) – offering shoppers a more flexible and convenient way to pay for all of their spring and summer must-haves.
These brands join Afterpay just as it releases its Bi-Annual Fashion and Beauty Trend Report for Spring/Summer 2021, which reveals that Canadian shoppers are still committed to the comfort-infused lifestyle brought on by the pandemic, while also purchasing more fashion- and beauty-forward items for the new Spring season.
According to Afterpay consumer data, Canadian shoppers are maintaining their comfortable work-from-home wardrobes, with athleisure and loungewear continuing to fill their shopping carts. That said, shoppers are also looking ahead to getting outdoors again – buying items such as jeans, sneakers and bodysuits, as well as jewelry staples like earrings, rings and bracelets. Canadian consumers are also replenishing their beauty shelves with everyday makeup items including lipstick, foundation, eyeshadow and mascara.
Shakaila Forbes-Bell, Consumer Fashion Psychologist for Afterpay said: “After a year of lockdowns, many people have assimilated to laid back fashion styles, keeping the comfort-dressing trend alive. As we head into a new season, Canadian consumers are turning to fun accessories as an easy way to break up the uniformity of loungewear. Additionally, ‘The Lipstick Effect’ is a phenomenon whereby people turn to small luxuries like beauty products during times of uncertainty, so it’s no surprise that makeup is top of mind for consumers.”
Melissa Davis, Head of North America for Afterpay said: “As we kick off the spring shopping season, we are thrilled to partner with such prominent new brands in Canada and give our customers more places to pay with flexibility and convenience. Merchants offering Afterpay attract new and engaged young shoppers, resulting in increased sales, larger basket sizes and higher conversion – which is especially apparent during peak shopping periods such as this one. We’re proud to expand our network of brands consumers love, and bring value to a new set of merchants in Canada.”
The new merchants will join Afterpay’s already wide network of nearly 86,000 global retailers, which allow customers to receive items immediately and pay over time, with no fees. Merchants benefit from Afterpay’s highly-engaged customer base of nearly 15 million, and during March 2021, Afterpay referred approximately 35 million customers to its merchant partners via its Shop Directory.
