Cosplay Costumes & Wigs Market - Global Outlook & Forecast 2023-2028

The cosplay costumes and wigs market size is expected to grow at a CAGR of 14.87% from 2022 to 2028.

MARKET TRENDS & OPPORTUNITIES

Rising Anime & Gaming Industry

Anime usually combines characterization, different forms of individualistic techniques, imagination, graphic art, and cinematography. Initially, anime was introduced in the television industry with the first Japanese television anime, which marked the beginning of a new anime industry. In the cosplay industry, anime has gained global visibility as one of the performing arts in which individuals dress up as anime characters. For instance, Anime NYC is one of New York’s anime conventions covering the best of Japanese pop culture in America. Further, over the past few years, cosplay costumes have gained growing demand from the gaming industry due to rising gaming conventions. Many cosplay costume manufacturing companies have increased their game-related costume and movie or anime characters. For instance, SimCosplay has introduced gaming-related costumes such as Bayonetta, Elden Ring, Kingdom Hearts, Street Fighter, Xenoblade, Cyberpunk 2077, Final Fantasy, TLOU 2, Zelda, Devil May Cry, Fire Emblem, Resident Evil, The Witcher, and others. Such factors are projected to propel the cosplay costumes and wigs market growth.

Rising Consumer Purchasing Power

Consumer purchasing power measures the value of money with which consumers purchase goods & services. It is mainly related to the cost-of-living index and indicates how inflation affects consumer buying ability. The pricing of various goods or services is one of the most important factors influencing the consumer’s purchasing power. Post-pandemic, the purchasing power has been observed to resume according to pre-pandemic levels. Thus, in major countries, especially the U.S., Halloween is celebrated yearly. In 2022, retailers were prepared to meet the demand for these costumes, making them memorable. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), participation in Halloween-related activities reached approximately 69% as per consumer planning, up from 65% in 2021. After the pandemic, many individuals have started returning to in-person gathering events. The spending on costumes has increased with increasing celebrations and planning of Halloween compared to the previous year.

SEGMENTATION INSIGHTS

INSIGHTS BY TYPE

The costumes segment accounted for a 62.83% share of the global costumes and wigs market in 2022. Moreover, the demand for costumes is expected to witness the highest growth during the forecast period owing to the rising number of conventions at different places. The cosplay industry is largely influenced by cosplayers who regularly attend every event or convention in their respective countries. The growth rate in this category is largely driven by variation in clothing, accessories & props, and footwear as per the desired chosen character. During the forecast period, the market demand is anticipated to grow for clothing costumes, as they are lightweight, easy to sew, and available in many materials and colors.

The global cosplay wigs market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 15.28% during the forecast period. Major market vendors have started their product portfolio expansion by including the production of cosplay wigs and cosplay costumes & accessories. For instance, Cosplaybuzz is one of the market's well-known vendors of cosplay wigs. The company produces cosplay wigs based on anime & comic characters.

Segmentation by Type

• Costumes
• Clothing
• Footwear
• Accessories & Props
• Wigs

INSIGHT BY THEME

The global cosplay costumes and wigs market dominated the Halloween theme segment, holding almost a 25.9% share. The higher share is due to the high demand for costumes & other accessories during this celebration. According to the National Retail Federation, the celebration of Halloween recovered by 69% post-pandemic. Thus, many vendors have increased their costume business per the Halloween theme. For instance, Spirit Halloween mainly focuses on manufacturing Halloween costumes and accessories. Halloween's themes include bats, aliens, dragons, ghosts, horror, panda, military, vampire, skeletons, and other costumes.

Segmentation by Themes

• Christmas
• Halloween
• Anime
• Games
• TV & Movies
• Others

INSIGHT BY SALES CHANNEL

The global cosplay costumes and wigs market by sales channel has been broadly classified online and offline. The market has been dominated by online sales channels and was valued at USD 18.23 billion in 2022. With digitalization capturing a high portion of the industry, several vendors focus on capitalizing on this opportunity and reaching out to customers directly via online websites and other digital media channels. Online sales also provide a wide variety of options for buyers and offer convenience for end-user customers to buy products of their choice from any place at any particular point in time. Thus, prominent market vendors seize the opportunity to promote and sell their products via online distribution channels.

Segmentation by Sales Channel

• Offline
• Online

GEOGRAPHICAL ANALYSIS

The global cosplay costumes and wigs market is dominated by North America, Europe, and Japan, which held more than 74% share in 2022. Due to growing cosplay events, the digital fashion industry, and increasing consumer purchasing power, the North American market is largely driven by cosplay. Moreover, a rising number of individuals accepting cosplay as their career is also expected to boost the market in further years. Many young populations accepted this path and became cosplayers who regularly attend every cosplay event or celebration and focus on increasing cosplay community awareness across their respective regions.

APEJ accounts for 17.84% of the global cosplay costumes and wigs market share. Rising consumer purchasing power from local vendors is expected to boost the market in this region. Many local cosplay costume vendors are present in China and have expanded their business through online channels. This has led vendors to increase their supply chain across various regions or countries. With the rise in internet penetration, especially during the pandemic outbreak and lockdowns, many people have become cosplayers and increased their business through their active presence on various social media channels.

Japan's cosplay costumes and wigs market was valued at USD 6.95 billion in 2022. The market in Japan is highly characterized by high demand for anime costumes & accessories. Further, offline sales in Japan are likely to grow with a CAGR of over 13.67% during the forecast period, and the market is likely to witness growth in the number of local stores of cosplay costumes and wigs in this country.

Segmentation By Geography

• North America
• US
• Canada
• APEJ
• China
• South Korea
• Australia
• Rest of APEJ
• Japan
• Europe
• Germany
• UK
• Spain
• Rest of Europe
• Rest of World

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

The global cosplay costumes and wigs market is highly fragmented, with several top vendors operating. However, the industry is witnessing consolidation, albeit at a slow pace.

Some of the key players in the market include Rubies II, Halloweencostumes.com, Hot Topic, FM-Anime, Sky Costume, Epic Cosplay Wigs, Ezcosplay, Abracadabra NYC, Miccostumes.com, and Distortions Unlimited. The vendors in the industry are using new business models and focusing on developing the portfolio of their establishments to drive growth. The focus is heavily shifting towards strategic orientations influencing the company’s positive results with a strong building of customer relationship management (CRM) by serving customers in both mediums, online and offline. The cosplay costumes and wigs market competition is expected to intensify further with an increase in product extensions and a growing customer base.

The cosplay costumes and wigs market concentration in developed countries such as the US, Japan, China, and other Western European countries is high. At the same time, the market is in its promising stage in developing economies such as the Asia Pacific, including South Korea, because of the entry of many international brands in these countries and the growing demand of the entertainment or events industry during festive seasons. The competition between vendors exists based on material type, theme-based costumes, applications, quality, price, product innovation, style, service, and customer satisfaction. The competition among major players is intense. The rapidly changing technological environment could adversely affect vendors as customers expect continual innovations and upgrades in the buying process of online shopping. The present scenario forces vendors to alter and refine their unique value proposition to achieve a strong market presence.

Company Profiles

• Rubies II
• Uwowo Cosplay
• Rolecosplay.com
• Disguise
• Simcosplay.com
• Cossky
• Yaya Han
• XCOSER International Cosplay Costume
• Spirit Halloween
• Blossom Costumes
• Fanplusfriend
• Escapade
• The Horror Dome
• Cosplaybuzz
• DokiDoki Cosplay
• Distortions Unlimited
• Micocostumes
• Abracadabra NYC
• Joke.co.uk
• Ezcosplay
• Epic Cosplay Wigs
• Sky Costume
• FM-Anime
• HalloweenCostumes.com
• Hot Topic

KEY QUESTIONS ANSWERED

1. How big is the cosplay costumes and wigs market?
2. What is the growth rate of the cosplay costumes and wigs market?
3. Which region dominates the global cosplay costumes and wigs market?
4. What are the key driving factors in the cosplay costumes and wigs market?
5. Who are the key players in the global cosplay costumes and wigs market?