Synthetic Status

Today’s wealthiest women often dress like they’re going to the gym – because they are. Here’s why athleisure is society’s wealth indicator.

By Ashleigh Smith

A young woman rushes into a shop in downtown Milan. Her hair is pulled back in a messy bun and her skin glistens from the sweat of a recent Pilates session. There’s another woman in the boutique. This woman wears a sleek black dress and red-soled stilettos. A sales associate spots them and shoots like an arrow toward the woman most likely to result in the highest commission: the woman wearing athleisure. This example isn’t just hypothetical. A 2013 study published in The Journal of Consumer Research surveyed salesclerks in luxury stores in Milan, asking them, “Which clients were likely to spend more money?” The options were either a woman in a fur and pearls or a woman in gym clothes. The response was overwhelmingly in favor of the woman in gym clothes. Luxury fashion has long been linked to wealth and status. The affluent were able to wear clothes made of silks and satins — delicate, expensive fabrics designed for those who relaxed indoors, avoiding strenuous physical tasks. Members of the working class wore clothing made to work and move that was made from fabrics like denim or burlap, which were inexpensive and durable.

With the advent of athleisure, these traditional fashion indicators of wealth and class have reversed. Athleisure, which can be traced back to the 1990s and the yoga pant, is typically made from fabrics designed for physical exertion, yet the price for clothes made of these fabrics can be very high. By 2020, the market for athleisure is estimated to reach a value of $83 billion, according to a study by GlobalData, a British data and analytics provider. The same study noted that both high fashion brands and prominent brands were “embracing” athleisure.

Athleisure has become the new symbol of wealth because it shows that the wearer has free time to fill with expensive exercise classes and the ability to choose to wear the same styles for both work and play.

The idea of “leisurewear” dates back to the 1930s. That’s “when slacks, halter-necked jumpsuits, shorts and playsuits were worn first by the rich and famous in the Hollywood Hills, the Hamptons or on the French Riviera,” said Professor Amanda Hallay, a fashion and culture historian and former editor of Couture magazine.

While elites still flock to posh spots like the Hamptons, they’re no longer strolling the promenades in shorts and slacks, they’re suiting up in athleisure for boutique fitness classes like yoga, spin and barre.

The boutique fitness industry is part of the $26 billion fitness market. Dominated by companies like Equinox and SoulCycle, industry players typically charge upwards of $40 for a single class and membership fees as high as $250 per month, according to The New York Times. That can add up to lifetime totals of $100,000 or more, excluding lifestyle-specific extras like personal training sessions, dieticians or the occasional juice cleanse.

Athleisure is the nylon thread that connects the pricy pastime of fitness with the everyday life of those with wealth and status. Generally, only the affluent —managers, professionals, owners — have the ability to decide whether their work attire should be a business suit or nylon capris.

“It’s not only the fact that people have the time to do all of this stuff, but it’s also the idea that you’re so busy that you have to go right to work,” said Dr. Ethan Lascity, director of fashion media at Southern Methodist University. For the affluent, the same clothes that work for exercise are also appropriate to wear in one’s professional life, he said.

In a society where leggings are now considered luxe, comfort is clearly the new indicator of the uncomfortable divide between the haves and the have-nots.

P a c k y o u r Suitcase serve looks

By Chloe Smith

Sarah Skelton Class of 2022

From statement bathing suits and perfectly coordinated cover-ups, to colorful ensembles and oversized hats, resort wear has become mainstream.

Where and when people go on vacation was once dependent on the season. Vacations to warm, luxury places over the winter holidays used to be reserved for the affluent upper-class, and resort wear collections were styled for these customers.

However, times have changed, and resort wear is now a necessity year-round. People can now book a flight to St. Barts, Santorini or Tulum with the click of a button. This increase in air travel, paired with the power of social media, has created a higher demand for resort wear.

Because of this increased demand, Miami Fashion Week “continues to be the U.S. home to that season and the world’s only international platform focused exclusively on resort lines,” according to Forbes.com. “Miami Fashion Week is at the forefront of an enormous global business.”

The desire to look picture-perfect on vacation is partly due to the rise of social media. According to research cited by Business of Fashion, 97 percent of millennial travelers flaunt their vacations on social media, posting up to four times a day.

When inf luencers and celebrities post pictures on vacation, they are almost always dressed to the nines. This has created opportunities for resor t wear brands to gain exposure as people post and share photos with their followers.

Brands like Zimmermann, LoveShackFancy, Solid and Striped, Cult Gaia and Made By Dawn have all capitalized on this growing market. These brands use lightweight fabrics, playful patterns and unique designs to create vacation-ready pieces that are perfect for any destination.

Access to resort wear has changed significantly in the last five years. Department stores cannot survive with extensive resort collections on their floors, despite increased demand. But e-commerce has provided a space to fill consumer’s needs.

The online retailer Golden Edit sells solely resort wear from brands across the globe. Revolve, another online retailer, has a featured shop called “OOO: Vacay Checklist,” which is full of bright clothes, bathing suits, shoes and accessories. Net-a-Porter is also in on the trend with its vacation shop featuring high-end labels. Department stores like Bloomingdale’s and Nordstrom have also adjusted with the times and offer vacation shops on their websites.

With small retailers and boutiques having more specific customer segments, they now have flexibility in their product offerings. The popular Dallas boutique L. bartlett carries resort fashion from brands like Show Me Your Mumu, Amanda Uprichard, Misa, Blue Life, Tori Praver, L Space and Peixoto.

“We always buy resort since a lot of our customers go on vacation around the holiday season,” said L. bartlett store manager Lizzy Martin. “Obviously, Dallas has nice weather throughout most months of the year, so we like to keep a variety of easy, go-to lightweight pieces in the store.”