Flair Cut : Stores Respond as Teens Take Shine to Glitzy Jeans
These are not your father’s bluejeans.
Although jeans have long been the unofficial school uniform across the nation, most of this year’s back-to-school shoppers aren’t looking for your run-of-the-mill versions; they’re on the hunt for unusual features, such as denims that glow, and nontraditional colors, such as pistachio.
And retailers are responding.
Limited Inc., for example, will introduce plastic-coated jeans in some of its Express stores this fall.
“There’s a rising interest in nontraditional jeans, and we’re trying to meet that demand,” said Jamie McFate, the fashion scout for the Columbus, Ohio-based retailer. “Right now we’re trying to offer a lot more denim looks and textures,” including a glittery metallic stretch jean that Limited will soon test-market. “Denim is moving into the 21st century,” McFate said.
Designer Todd Oldham already sells a shiny “disco denim” jean with metallic fibers under the label that bears his name.
Diesel, a New York-based apparel company, manufactures iridescent jeans using a denim with a shiny finish. And Lei, a Los Angeles-based fashion house, also produces a denim line with a finish that glistens.
Glossy denim is a sign of changing fashion times, said Kathy Bornstein, a Los Angeles-based spokeswoman for Macy’s, which sells Lei’s iridescent twill for women. Shiny jeans provide more of a dress-up look, she said.
“The faded, worn look used to be the fashionable status quo,” she said. “Today, teens want their jeans to look new--even if they’re not. Some of these kids are using a lot of spray starch. It’s a whole new denim-look direction.”
Among those shopping for the new look recently was 16-year-old Sylvia Lopez of Los Angeles, who was browsing at the Traffic store at Beverly Center.
“I want jeans that stand out,” she said. “I plan to buy some shiny denim because the plain old blue, straight-leg jeans are kind of nerdy.”
Mia Jorgensen, 11, of Whittier, said that although she plans to buy traditional bluejeans, many of her friends are now sporting glossy denim.
“They like it because it shines and glitters,” she said in a phone interview. “It’s great that we have more choices--especially in colors.”
One of the most popular colors, indigo, is a throwback to the 1970s, predating the faded stone- and acid-washed looks dominant in the ‘80s and much of the ‘90s.
“Everyone’s buying different colors--black, dark green, red and brown,” said 16-year-old Daniel Rust of Reseda, who’s in the market for a pair of black jeans. “Jeans have always been popular, but they’re really hot right now.”
American Express’ back-to-school survey confirms that. The report, which is based on a survey of 1,000 parents and students nationwide, shows that 76% of teens plan to buy jeans for their school wardrobe, compared with 61% a year ago.
Although the survey indicates that baggy jeans remain popular, particularly among young males, retailers and designers say the new styles will do just as well. A popular new twist on the loose-fitting style is the carpenter jean, with hammer loops and big pockets.
Female teens are snapping up flared-leg jeans and the more flamboyant bell-bottoms. Those cuts--part of the hippie look of the 1960s and early ‘70s--are now part of a retro fashion fad among teens, retailers say.
“Some of the girls at my school wear flared brown or black jeans, and they look like they stepped out of Vogue magazine,” said 15-year-old Griffin Morris of Corona del Mar, who recently purchased a pair of platform shoes, another fashion throwback.
Guess Inc. is among the firms catering to this demand for retro. The Los Angeles-based company will introduce embroidered jeans in January. One version in development sports a pattern of flowers sewn above a short fringe at the hem.
“It was inspired by the 1970s,” said Stephanie Hurley, a design director at Guess.
Why this interest in flares and other styles from the past?
“Kids didn’t experience these fashions the first time, and it looks new to them,” said Carolyn Brookter, a spokeswoman for the Target stores, which is promoting denim with embroidered cartoon characters for small children as well as its private-label jeans for teens.
Though many retail chains will be offering back-to-school sales over the next two weeks, the American Express survey indicates that discounts may be only a marginal motivation for teens. Seven of 10 teens said finding an item on sale is only somewhat important or not important at all.
“This indicates brand loyalty among teens who would rather pay full price for a specific brand than buy a similar brand on sale,” the survey report says.
However, some teens say they have practical reasons for their brand-name preference.
“When I buy tops, I look for shirts that are on sale,” said Katrina Orcutt, 14, of Arcadia. “But jeans normally cost more anyway. If you’re going to buy jeans, you might as well buy the brand names you know will last.”
Teens are willing to shell out the green for unusual versions of their favorite brands. For example, pricey limited-edition jeans by Levi Strauss are among the strongest sellers at American Rag, a popular Los Angeles clothing store.
The store offers the Levi 201, a jean based on the original 1937 design, for $149. It’s a thick, durable weave with a buckle in the back. And a special-edition Levi 501, a re-creation of a 1955 design that features a thicker weave and hand-stitching, retails for $169. Both of these pants are colored with indigo dye, which is rarely used these days.
Levi, the name most Americans have long associated with good old-fashioned blue jeans, has given those reissues an air of exclusivity by limiting the retail distribution to some of the more fashion-forward stores.
Given the dominance of these big names, how much chance does the little-guy manufacturer have?
Designers say that if the product is good, it will succeed. For example, the lesser-known Lei has been distributing its pants to Macy’s for years.
Some of the newer players in the denim game also are attracting attention. For example, Diesel’s shiny “smylon” jean, a weave of nylon and cotton, retails at some stores for about $115. And American Rag sells a Todd Oldham line in colors such as black, brown and khaki that sells for about $100.
Oldham, who has been designing jeans for just three years, has been among the more daring with colors. He also offers jeans in fluorescent orange, pistachio and robin’s-egg blue. He and the fashion house of Emanuel Ungaro are among the new wave of designers in an already crowded market.
The newer lines must compete with the denim stylings of designers such as Donna Karan, Ralph Lauren, Giorgio Armani and the late Gianni Versace.
Denim chic began in the early 1970s when designer names such as Calvin Klein and Gloria Vanderbilt began to appear on bluejeans. Those labels gave denim a high-fashion status and a broader sales base.
Makers of designer jeans are stepping up their marketing campaigns because denim sales are traditionally stronger during the second half of the year, according to the International Mass Retail Assn.
“Jeans sold from June through December 1996 could stretch to the moon. One mile equals 1,509 pairs of jeans,” the trade group said in a recent report.
Denim sales have increased a steady 10% every year from 1989 to 1996, when growth slowed to 5%, apparel industry analysts say. Now that the denim market appears poised for even stronger growth, retailers and manufacturers are positioning themselves.
For example, the Sergio Valente label, which faded from the denim scene in the 1980s, will be relaunched in September and offered at upscale boutiques.
Although the field of jeans continues to expand, competitors such as Oldham are undaunted.
“There is a lot of product out there,” Oldham said. “But if you make something new and different, you can attract buyers.”
