From Vicky Pollard To Pilates Princesses: How Did Athleisure Become A Status Symbol?

AthleisureSpeaking to The Guardian in 2024, style writer TJ Sidhu said gilets are “such a specific item of clothing that people really recognise and associate with that industry of banker bros.” But the garment began its life in the fields of 15th-century France, where farm labourers needed to be able to move their arms while keeping their torsos warm. Do such physical demands really exist in the corridors of JP Morgan? Or, like Londoners who drive showroom-clean 4x4s on city tarmac, have outdoorwear and activewear come to have an aspirational meaning outside their purpose?It was hard to imagine athleisure (like today’s “pilates princess” brands) as status symbols in the naughties, when characters like Matt Lucas’ Vicky Pollard helped to deepen stereotypes associating out-of-gym sportswear with the working class.Still, Natalie Chapman, a senior designer at menswear clothing brand Raging Bull says, that seems to be where we’re at. one of the weird contradictions of our time is that a large segment of the clothing industry sells itself as being unbranded/anonymous as possible. but the clothes aren't anonymous. they scream and shout. when worn, they announce you're a middle-class person with a computer job pic.twitter.com/4rOxOgT1hf— derek guy (@dieworkwear) March 8, 2023It’s partly about wellness“The rise in people prioritising athleisure has, in some ways, led to it being seen as a status symbol, and this is very much rooted in it combining functionality with image and lifestyle,” Chapman tells us. “What you wear to brunch or to grab a coffee says a lot about your lifestyle and the way you take care of yourself. These days, people want others to know that they value health and wellness, as this is seen as a desirable quality in our society.”Some research shows that fitness in the UK has a class problem, with the poorest struggling to get access to or time for workouts.By extension, perhaps, those at least pretending to have use for a £108 Lululemon jacket the company describes as “designed for casual” can solidify their socioeconomic status.Then, there’s label flexing and unspoken “uniforms” at play, the designer adds. “These types of ‘stereotypical’ styles for subgroups and, in this case, certain professions are often formed as a way of signalling group identity and shared norms,” she tells HuffPost UK. Lockdown played a partTracksuits were the unofficial uniforms of many work-from-home employees in lockdown, and those exercising at home sent sales soaring too, Forbes reports.A 2020 paper on athleisure found that women associated the style with “health” – soon after, the #pinkpilatesprincess hashtag was linked to what Vogue Business calls a “growing consumer group of affluent women, willing to invest in athleisure, wellness and beauty.” Fashion forecast industry Heuritech says that demand hasn’t slowed much since, with the activewear sector expected to be valued at $250 billion in 2026.But, as Serena Brown, speaking to the British Journal of Photography, argued, the move might amount to “gentrifying fashion.” “Suddenly, designer brands were charging thousands of pounds for a tracksuit, and I was seeing low-income people being priced out of the trends they had defined,” she wrote.Nonetless, trend forecasters say it seems unlikely that the “considerable price premium” researchers have linked to athleisure will go anywhere soon.Related...Here's The Real Reason Designer Plaster Logos All Over Clothes – And No, It's Not Just AdvertisingThis Common Laundry Mistake Keeps Your Clothes Wet For LongerThe 4 Rudest Types Of Comments You Should Never Make About Someone's Clothes

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