From Elvis Presley’s sequined jumpsuits to Michael Jackson’s high-water pants, from polyester disco shirts open to the navel to Members Only jackets, men’s fashions have hit some all-time lows in the last 50 years.
In the last decade, casual has trumped professional in men’s fashion trends. Think shorts with a sports jacket (or maybe you shouldn’t think about that) or skinny jeans or T-shirts with edgy sayings or bling on everything.
The trend, though, is changing. And you can thank the millennials.
Over the last two years, men’s retail clothing sales jumped 4.1 percent to $101.8 billion annually, eclipsing a 2.8 percent rise to $150.1 billion on the female side, according to research firm Euromonitor. By 2017, men’s fashion sales are predicted to hit about $110 billion annually while women’s will rise to $156 billion, the Los Angeles Times reports.
And it’s guys in their 20s and 30s who are transforming men’s fashions. They like looking good, from clothes to socks and shoes to hair, and are willing to fork over the time and the dollars to make it happen. Names dropped on these testosterone-fueled fashionistas include the Henry (high earner, not rich yet) and the Yummy (young, urban male).