So 2020 is and always will be a peculiar kind of year, marked by the covid-19 pandemic, mass lockdowns around the world, and profound changes in the way we do things like shop and work. It's also been a year of activism, with movements like Black Lives Matter that have influenced various domains such as culture and fashion. As the end of the year approaches, it's time to take stock, and it's no surprise to see that our wardrobes have been inspired by the major events of the last 12 months.
Ethics, activism and stay-at-home style
While apparel relating to the Black Lives Matter movement proved popular worldwide, another event largely contributed to making fashion about activism this year: the US presidential elections. Americans and supporters elsewhere didn't hesitate to wear their political ideas on their sleeves -- literally -- in recent weeks. In the US, searches for terms such as "vote" were up 29% week-on-week according to the Lyst report, with T-shirts becoming the most popular political fashion statements.
Plus, 2020 saw consumers looking to shop in a more ethical, more conscious way. The global fashion search platform reports an average of over 35,000 monthly searches for "vintage fashion" in September, as well as a 104% rise in online fashion searches for secondhand-related keywords. Lockdowns also have had a major impact on fashion choices, with many consumers trading their stilettos and loafers for slippers and sneakers from the end of Q1 2020. Searches for sweatpants shot up 104% month-on-month in April, when many countries were under stay-at-home orders.
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