Skinny jeans have had a chokehold on older generations for years, but Gen Z is increasingly tearing them off, opting instead for a more comfortable cut.
The result: U.S. sales of straight-leg women’s denim surpassed revenue for skinny jeans in 2021, making the more relaxed fit America’s best-selling style, according to market research firm The NPD Group.
The looser trouser now represents one-third ($3.3 billion) of the jeans category for women.
Although data shows Gen Z and millennial shoppers still prefer skinny jeans over other options, the super slim cut’s popularity is waning.
In 2021, sales of straight-leg jeans nearly doubled among Gen Z women compared to 2019, while the demographic’s demand for skinny jeans declined 34%. The trend was similar for millennial women between the same two time periods: straight-leg jean sales climbed 12%; skinny jeans fell 15%.
A new denim cycle
Part of the attraction to baggy denim comes from consumers spending more time at home in sweatpants during the pandemic. The public health crisis increased society’s acceptance of comfortable clothing, which, in turn, accelerated the shift toward looser garments, Maria Rugolo, an apparel industry analyst at The NPD Group, explained in a statement.
People around the globe have also gained weight due to stress eating and lack of physical activity.
In the U.S., almost 40% of shoppers “have had their waist size changed during the pandemic and that’s driving the need for a closet upgrade,” Chip Bergh, CEO of denim giant Levi Strauss & Co., told analysts during an earnings call in January.
At the same time, young people have been expressing their dislike of skinny jeans for a while now, indicating a larger fashion trend is underway.
On TikTok, users have watched videos tagged with #MomJeans 342 million times. Videos with #SkinnyJeans have received 307 million views.
Earlier this year, Levi’s Bergh stated the industry is experiencing the “early innings of the new denim cycle,” which is all about “looser, baggier fits.”
Likewise, Fran Horowitz, CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch Co., told analysts in March 2021, “the skinny jean is becoming less important.”
In 2021, the number of tweets mentioning “skinny jeans” was down 26% compared to 2019, according to Twitter. The term, however, was used more often than “mom jeans” or “straight jeans.”
Additional figures from The NPD Group reveal total revenue from women’s jeans increased 9% in 2021 compared to 2019.
Rugolo noted the rise of straight-leg jeans means denim now has the ability to meet a variety of occasions.
“It can help fulfill casual everyday needs,” she said, “while also offering a versatile, dressy option for those not ready or willing to get back into structured wardrobes.”
