2020 is certainly going to be a year that no one will forget – regardless of how much we might want to. Who else remembers the trends that saturated those shocking 4 months?
From April, many people were suddenly into making banana bread, chatting online with their friends via the Zoom platform and donning athleisure during every minute of the day.
Most people were quite literally trapped inside their homes for around 16 weeks, so it makes total sense that athleisure established itself at the height of pandemic fashion. Let’s take a look at why:
The ‘work from home’ life
Apart from our fantastic key workers (thank you again, by the way!), the majority of UK citizens had no choice but to work from home. In the words of England’s Prime Minister in March 2020: “Now is the time for everyone to stop and to stop all non-essential travel” as he urged people to work from home…”
So, with no more 09:00am meetings or catching the first train into the city, what was the point of getting dressed into anything other than a tracksuit? Athleisure fast replaced suits and skirts because they’re comfortable to wear around the house, and nobody was going to see you anyway…
The hospitality industry temporarily closed
With no more Friday nights spent at the local pub or wining and dining at your favourite restaurant, the demand for ‘going out-out’ clothes was practically diminished.
Those dazzling Saturday nights out were sharply swapped with cosy Saturday nights in, meaning that dressing to impress was no longer a thing. So, what did you put on instead of a fancy dress? All signs pointed to a snug tracksuit and some comfortable shoes.
Both men and women could get involved
The beautiful thing about athleisure during the pandemic was that it wasn’t tied to just one gender. While the ladies were online shopping for women’s tracksuits from the likes of The Gym King, the ‘lads’ were doing the exact same thing for men’s athleisure.
Tracksuits and co-ords became a staple of pandemic fashion because the outfits didn’t discriminate – men and women of all ages were able to be both stylish and comfortable simultaneously.
Everyone jumped on the bandwagon
Because the demand for athleisure soared, many online retailers had no choice but to jump on the bandwagon! During the pandemic, tracksuits and other forms of sportswear became everyone’s go-to outfit choice, which meant that the clothing industry had to adapt or get left behind.
Online shopping itself soared during the national lockdown due to people being unable to leave their house and, as a result, having more money to spend in the process. Where do you spend that money when in a national lockdown? Online, of course.
Athleisure isn’t going anywhere
Although we’ve taken some steps forward since the pandemic first struck, coronavirus appears very stubborn and is showing no signs of leaving the world anytime soon.
With that being said, more and more people are opting for the athleisure vibe because, well why not? We all love an opportunity to be both stylish and comfortable. Long live the athleisure trend!
