(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Will they recouple? Will they crash out without finding a match?
We’re not talking about Brexit, but another event that is capturing the U.K’s attention: Love Island.
The reality show is a phenomenon in Britain. Shares in broadcaster ITV Plc rose as much as 4.5% in London on Tuesday, after audience numbers for the first episode of the season exceeded last year's.
Its popularity, particularly among 16-34 year-olds, has made it a magnet for retail and consumer brands.
For the uninitiated, Love Island follows a collection of attractive young people as they try to find love in a Majorca mansion. In addition to the drama, there is plenty of focus on clothing – even though most of the time the characters are not wearing much of it – and beauty looks.
Last year this created a sales boom for bikinis and bronzing powder that has the high street salivating this time around. Companies including Boohoo Group Plc, which works with some of the past contestants, and Asos Plc, whose Instagram feed has featured plenty of swimwear over the past week, will be hoping to get in on the act.
With the Brexit blues keeping a lid on spending, U.K. chains are grasping for salvation from wherever they can find it. And with the show poised to go stateside, U.S. store and consumer groups will have to decide whether it’s worth jumping on the beach buggy.
But retailers should tone down their expectations. If past years are anything to go by, official partners will enjoy the bulk of the good fortune, and only a little of it will spread across the market. However romantic it sounds, Love Island can’t save the British high street.
Last year’s fashion partner was online retailer Missguided. The show not only boosted sales by 40% when it aired, but elevated awareness of the brand. Superdrug, last year’s headline sponsor, also enjoyed demand for male grooming products and Love Island temporary tattoos.
This year’s fashion partner is Manchester-based I Saw It First. It will be hoping the tieup will help its brand stand out in the increasingly crowded online fast-fashion market.
The retailer has a good chance of replicating Missguided’s success. It will dress the female participants, and offer viewers the opportunity to buy their outfits from the same app that they use to vote for contestants. Consumers can also easily shop the islanders’ looks through a dedicated website.
The show is credited with fostering some surprise fashion hits, such as cycling shorts and thong bikinis. That may offer a way for listed chains, such as Associated British Food Plc’s Primark, to partake in the enthusiasm. Any broader sales uplift will likely be limited, as such items will appeal only to a relatively niche audience.
The weather will affect stores’ ability to hop on the Love Island train. The show’s wardrobe is typically beachwear and the glam styles worn on dates. That’s well timed, as retailers will currently have plenty of swimwear in stock. 2018 was marked by a heatwave, making it harder to assess just how much of the extra sales of self-tan and strappy tops were due to the show, and how much to the sunshine. If temperatures are colder this year, there might be less demand flimsy beach cover-ups.
Even for Love Island partners, life might be getting tougher.
With the pressure on advertising revenue, ITV is looking to make more money by selling products directly to consumers, and has developed its own Love Island shop. Administered by app-maker Monterosa, it generated revenue of 5 million pounds ($6.4 million) last year. This year, the broadcaster has introduced a tie-in makeup range.
But there’s another reason why the show might not be universally good news for the high street.
Reality TV has tended to foster a highly groomed look for both men and women. That is all feeding into the trend for consumers to splash out on cosmetics rather than clothes.
GlobalData forecasts a 2.8% increase in beauty spending in the U.K. this year, compared with a 1.1% increase in clothing and footwear.
Superdrug saw a 43% increase in men having eyebrow threading treatments when the show was on in 2018 compared with the year earlier. Over 25% of the traffic to its website from the Love Island app was male. This highlights a missed opportunity – the show has no menswear fashion partner.
Although retailers including Superdrug and Primark offer beauty services in-store, they’re still not the typical first port of call for Brits looking to recreate a television style – they’re more likely to visit a salon.
So despite all the hype, store chains’ hook ups may be less thrilling than those on Love Island.
--With assistance from Alex Webb.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Jennifer Ryan at jryan13@bloomberg.net
This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.
Andrea Felsted is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering the consumer and retail industries. She previously worked at the Financial Times.
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