Mira Kopolovic is a senior social scientist at Canvas8. She has a master’s degree that focused on visual culture and artist-brand collaborations, and spends her spare time poring over dystopian literature.

In 2020, the fashion industry was dealt a chaotic hand. In one sense, COVID-19’s cancellation of social life rendered fashion obsolete, with stylistic expression constrained to the square of a Zoom call. Stuck at home with webcams for catwalks, the formerly fashion-obsessed instead took on 

 viable office workwear. Nike, for example, prepared for the fashion apocalypse – gearing its products towards staying at home, and swapping ‘Just Do It’ for 

At the same time, style wasn’t always sidelined. In times of bleakness, 

 kept people tethered to nostalgia for better days, offering sanity and hope. And amid 2020’s political upheaval, what people wore became a symbol of belief and allegiance to values. It’s why young Americans could sport Joe Biden campaign merch 

’. Not to mention that, in a climate where 

 Britons scrub clothes clean after an outing to protect against COVID-19, this year has recast clothing as a matter of life and death. Now that 2020 has destabilised the fashion industry, people are moving into 2021 with renewed expectations – both for style as a force of identity and for fashion brands themselves as key societal players.

In this chapter of Canvas8’s 2021 Expert Outlook, Emma Hope Allwood, Dazed Digital's former head of fashion, discusses how modern collectors’ mentalities are shaping approaches to style; Jordan Anderson, editor-at-large at 

, looks at how brands can uphold their responsibility to amplify voices; and Kim Jenkins, assistant professor of fashion studies at Ryerson University, explains how a polarised political climate changes the stakes for fashion brands.

Fashion fans will take a pastiche approach to formulating their style

Emma Hope Allwood is a writer and editor specialising in fashion and pop and digital culture, and formerly Dazed Digital's head of fashion

When I interviewed Virgil Abloh this time last year, he said “streetwear is going to die.” What he meant was that it’s no longer going to be about who has the newest, shiniest, box-fresh piece. Instead, it’s about looking back into your personal fashion archive and pulling out something that other people can’t just go into a shop and buy. The new status symbols are old things. Getting something vintage can be much more exciting, credible, and ethical than just going out and buying a brand-new item. On the designer end of the spectrum, that means iconic designer archive pieces, whether that’s a Vivienne Westwood corset or a Jean Paul Gaultier mesh top. At the other end of the spectrum, on the Depop side of things, you have cult vintage Nike items.

There’s going to be more of a focus on building a personal archive of clothing and having it be something that’s very unique to you – a real expression of your knowledge and style and also your beliefs, whether that’s about shopping sustainably or the kind of brands that you want to buy. People are going to be more impressed with an archival piece that someone has sought out – not someone whose attitude is, “Oh well, I’m rich and so I just went out and I spent this money on this brand-new designer item.” That’s not really impressive anymore.

It’s no longer about who has the newest, shiniest, box-fresh piece – it’s about looking back into your personal fashion archive and pulling out something other people can’t just go into a shop and buy.

This ties into the way that the fashion industry is evolving. Obviously, fashion as an industry is very innovative and likes to push the envelope in many ways – but in other ways, it can be an industry that’s very traditional and stuck in certain ways of doing things, so this year it’s been interesting to see who has pushed the boundaries in a meaningful way. A brand like Telfar is a very modern idea of what a fashion brand should be. Telfar, as a Black-owned, queer-owned fashion business, has basically created an ‘It’ bag unlike any other ‘It’ bag that fashion has ever seen, and it’s become a symbol for young people. It’s a new kind of iconic fashion piece. The point is that Telfar made the bag democratically available. You didn’t have to be logging in at whatever time. The bags themselves are accessibly priced. They are a democratic kind of new fashion status symbol but the brand took it to the next level and said, “Anyone can sign up and buy one, and you will get it delivered to you in a few months’ time.”

So, to me, that was something that was really interesting, because it’s making fashion very accessible. The brand motto or motif is ‘It’s not for you, it’s for everyone’. That just says so much about where the industry is right now, where it should be, and where it should be going. This year, more than ever, has been a time when people have really looked at the elitism that permeates the fashion industry at every single layer and thought, ‘Do we want this industry to look like that or do we want something better? Do we want something that’s more open? Do we want something that’s more democratic, more meritocratic? How can we build towards a vision for fashion that is for everyone?’ Telfar as a brand speaks so well to so many different conversations in the fashion industry, but these conversations are expanding far beyond Telfar, to shape the industry as a whole.

Brand loyalty is waning as people focus on self-expression

People will be given space to make their own demands

Jordan Anderson is editor-at-large at NSS Magazine and online editor at Twin Magazine

The key theme right now in fashion is instability. After COVID-19, the fashion industry is going to change, especially in regards to the hierarchy of fashion. If you think of this past Fashion Week in September 2020, it wasn’t much of anything. So now, fashion’s structure is being pushed. People are questioning things. Why do – or did – we need this? The art of design won’t change, but the system of fashion itself will. It could either become exclusive, as budget cuts limit young designers and creators, or more inclusive, as the industry abandons old traditions, like fashion shows, in search of something less traditional.

Within these broader changes, there are shifting attitudes when it comes to social responsibility. It’s no longer a matter of speaking about issues, but instead, allowing people and subgroups to speak for themselves. This is a big step from assuming what people want to see or hear. That’s part of the power of collaboration. Recently, brands like Gucci have improved in terms of speaking on social issues, because they’ve improved on their team, both internally, and through collaborations with young Black artists – meaning that the brand amplifies voices instead of speaking for them.

Fashion Week in September 2020, it wasn’t much of anything. So now, fashion’s structure is being pushed. People are questioning things. Why do – or did – we need this?

This is important as we think about new fashion demographics. Especially with Gen Zers, brand loyalty is not as much of a thing as it was ten years ago. Nowadays, for the most part, people are thinking about fashion and style in a very individual way. This puts more pressure on brands to sell themselves because people are no longer taking the approach of defining themselves by wearing all Prada, all Gucci, or all Louis Vuitton anymore. Instead, it’s like they’re using these brands as paint on their wider palette, saying, ‘OK, I’ll take a little bit of yellow, I’ll take a little bit of white, I’ll take a little bit of red, I’ll take a little bit of purple, and I’ll use all of these different brands to create a vision of myself’. So it’s no longer a case of loving a certain brand and wearing that brand for the rest of their life. It’s more like people are saying, ‘I’m creating a painting and you have to show me that you are worthy of being a colour in my painting’.

This more individualised, pick-and-mix approach to style is putting more emphasis on not just a brand’s name, but what they’re doing. Even with heritage brands, we’re seeing this. People will always buy heritage brands – the Prada, Louis Vuitton, and Gucci – but the thought process behind it is different. There used to be an attitude of, ‘Oh my god, I just want to just wear Gucci’. But increasingly, the thought process is, ‘Prada, Louis Vuitton, or Gucci fit into my narrative because of what they’re doing as brands, and the role they play in the wider cultural conversation’. As this develops, it’ll be really interesting because that will mean a lot of brands will risk dying in a landscape where they can’t ride on loyalty. With this new approach to the role fashion brands play in people’s style and identity, the most important thing in 2021 will be being a part of the wider conversation – and making sure that they’re speaking with a voice that makes sense. That means not just speaking for speaking’s sake, but speaking through the right technological media and using your brand as a platform to help people to speak for themselves.

People choose to shop brands whose values align with their own

Belief systems will be aligned with fashion choices

Kim Jenkins is assistant professor of fashion studies in the School of Fashion at Ryerson University

Particularly in the wake of the pandemic, we’re seeing a very ideologically polarised landscape, and this polarisation is coming through in what we wear. We’re already seeing it with masks – there’s anger and resentment at feeling like your voice is not heard, so clothing is a space where people can be self-governed. Fashion and logos are becoming shorthand for political ideologies. We’re seeing how certain items of clothing – like the polo shirt – have been co-opted by white supremacists. In Charlottesville, when we saw a bunch of men with tiki torches marching with white polo shirts. That wasn’t an accident. Especially with menswear, people are saying, ‘I want to wear this as a signal on the street that I’m aligned with this belief system’. Going forward, a lot is going to be riding on brands in terms of who they associate with. If you’re a luxury brand with a queen, leader, or a First Lady who loves your clothes, but you don’t really love their politics, how do you navigate that? There’s a desire to be neutral or diplomatic, but in an increasingly polarised world, is there such a thing as neutral?

That’s on the most extreme end of the spectrum, in terms of how people are using fashion. But for most people, 2020 has shifted style in other ways. There’s the move towards a modular approach to style, which allows people to focus on expressing something from the waist up in the era of virtual meetings. So you might focus on a sweater – the colour or style expressed on your top half – but you don’t have to worry about everything else. The pandemic has also led to a gravitation towards more comfortable clothing as for many of us our work situations have changed and moved inward into the interior space. As we move into this interior, both sartorially and psychologically, it’s all about comfort and warmth and something that’s practical. We’re already seeing an uptick in online purchases of clothing like sweat suits or comfortable sweaters, joggers. Maybe not as much footwear, but more things that are perfect for wearing at home.

Polarisation is coming through in what we wear. We’re already seeing it with masks – there’s anger and resentment at feeling like your voice is not heard, so clothing is a space where people can be self-governed.

I also say this acknowledging that this is not the situation for everyone else. There are some people who are essential workers and have no choice but to style or tailor their clothing to their work situation – but for many people who are working from home, it’s all about comfortable clothing. This goes across the hierarchy of fashion – you’ve got people who are just wearing inexpensive and affordable comfortable clothing and then you’ve got people who need to have luxe casual clothing, so an uptick in athleisure. But at the same time, I don’t think that this is going to do away with maximalist dress. That’s still a great outlet for people who want to release. Maximalist style is a good outlet for people who are stepping outside and want to express something or enjoy something that’s colourful and cheerful in some ways.

I’m cautious to define exactly how this will look going forward, after the pandemic. Some historians believe that during a wartime mindset, or in times of war we’re austere, we’ve been suppressed, and so afterwards we come bursting out with this sense of euphoria. This could mean that after the pandemic – our version of the war ending – there’ll be a huge uptick in maximalist dress, colour, and just doing the most with what you’re wearing, in a kind of pendulum-switch. You wouldn’t want to wear something that psychologically reminds you of this other stage that was so austere and restrained. If that’s the case, maximalist brands will really have a field day with this.

Emma Hope Allwood is a writer and editorial/creative consultant specialising in fashion, social media, and digital strategy. She worked at 

 from 2014 to 2020, and her previous role as head of fashion encompassed directing all digital fashion content and social media as well as ideating on partnerships with brands including Converse, Gucci, Dior, and Maison Margiela.

Jordan Anderson is editor-at-large at NSS Magazine and online editor at Twin Magazine. As a fashion journalist and creative director, his work explores political themes in and outside the fashion industry including race, gender, identity, and brand and cultural ethics.

Kim Jenkins is assistant professor of fashion studies in the School of Fashion at Ryerson University, lecturing previously at Parsons School of Design and Pratt Institute. She designed an elective course and exhibition entitled ‘Fashion and Race’ and founded The Fashion and Race Database, an online platform of open-source tools that expand the narrative of fashion history and challenge misrepresentation within the fashion system.

Global

Fashion and Style

How can clothing convey status but not wealth? How can heritage brands excel in an era of less brand loyalty? And how is political polarisation impacting style? In this part of the 2021 Expert Outlook, we speak to three experts about how people are redefining the role fashion plays in identity.

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