Will Americans begin to retire their sweatsuits for jeans as states begin to reopen and friends and family interact once again? CivicScience surveyed U.S. adults to investigate the fashion trends that will follow the loungewear, athleisure, and Zoom shirts that reigned supreme for over a year.
How will this impact the demand for denim in 2021? Twenty-eight percent of Americans 18 and older plan to purchase new jeans within the next six months.
A majority of the Gen Pop (18+) spends under $50 when purchasing new jeans with only 7% willing to spend $100 or more.
Can denim brands compete with the overwhelming desire for comfort throughout the past year? When asked what’s most important when buying jeans, comfort or style, almost half of the population reported looking for comfort (49%), while 41% feel both style and comfort are important.
Over the years, trends surrounding the fit of jeans have come and gone. But the tried and true fits are still most often worn by the general population. Currently, 29% regularly wear relaxed fit jeans, followed by 26% who wear regular fit, and, to Gen Z’s dismay, 15% wearing skinny fit.
Of respondents who wear jeans, mid-rise is more commonly the preferred style, followed by high-rise. While low-rise jeans are the least preferred style, their popularity has been increasing in 2021.
Gender Differences
Breaking the denim data down by gender reveals interesting insights on how jeans are selected by men and women. When it comes to spending, women are more likely to pay over $100 on new jeans (9%) than men (6%).
Both style and comfort are a higher priority to women (47%) whereas men show more concern for comfort (55%).
Almost twice as many women (34%) prefer high-rise jeans as men (18%). More than two-thirds of men prefer mid-rise jeans (68%).
Gen Z Denim Trends
Eighteen- to twenty-four-year-olds are the most likely to purchase high-end denim, with 24% saying they will spend $100 or more on new jeans.
Perhaps a reflection of their spending habits, Gen Z are also the most likely to select style as the most important factor when buying jeans (20%), and are the least likely to select comfort (28%).
Among those who use social media sites, TikTok and Instagram users have notably higher percentages of low-rise denim wearers when compared to Facebook and Twitter users.
Denim Care
Jury is still out on how often we should be washing denim, but 66% of U.S. adults do so after three wears or more frequently. Thirteen percent give them a wash once a month at most.
While we likely won’t be seeing many Canadian Tuxedos out during the summer heat, jeans are still an important part of most people’s wardrobes. As Americans begin swapping their sweatpants for jeans, there could be a number of under 25’s sporting throw-back, low-rise denim bottoms.
