The Lower the Stocks, The Higher the Stockings
By Shawn Hassanzei
March 31, 2026
Graphic by Emily Yao
Fashion may appear insular, as though trends are dictated solely within the fashion industry itself. However, this could not be further from the truth. For as long as there has been an economy, fashion has mirrored it.
One might wonder why power suits and strong shoulders are resurging, why quiet luxury has become a dominant aesthetic, or why bold, vibrant colors have given way to a sea of beiges and browns. These shifts reflect the health of the economy. Take the year 2000, when the dot-com bubble fueled rapid growth and heavy investment. The economy was liquid and optimistic, and people had money to spend and wanted to flaunt it, “Great Gatsby” style. Fashion followed suit with heavy makeup, cropped silhouettes, and bejeweled everything.
So let’s start. One of the biggest upticks in the American economy was the post–World War I financial boom. After the war, victory, and stellar economic growth, the whole of the American economy had plenty of money and an even larger will to spend it.
In the lead-up to this period, the American fashion scene was a mirror of the Puritan majority within America. Conservative looks for women consisted of ankle-length gowns and faces caked with makeup, which really reflected the perceived value of women, who were seen as nothing more than beautiful trophies for their husbands. Men were even less stylish, with stuffy suits that were structured and heavily layered to signify stability and economic strength. However, right after, America entered the Gilded Age, an era of glitz and glamour that was characterized by the Art Deco movement and extreme wealth inequality. It is important to note that this economic growth largely coincided with major women’s rights movements, as was the case with many waves of political achievements for marginalized groups.
I digress. With women challenging the stagnant status quo and the economy finally picking up steam, fashion was sure to change along with it.
Out with the long hair and long gowns, and in with chic bobs and knee-length dresses! Women pioneered this fashion era with the iconic flapper style, a look that exemplified the gross extravagance of the era whilst serving as a testament to the fight for individual freedom. The slip dress, a typical piece to us, was something scandalously provocative and empowering in the 1920s and led to echoing fashion movements such as androgyny. The makeup also changed. Women no longer wanted to be trophies for men, so they swapped heavy makeup for glamorous and extravagant looks that appeased the whimsy these young women had as children.
These choices really drew attention to the newfound confidence and power they wielded. Although the most dramatic changes in fashion revolved around women, the men’s fashion scene had its own epiphany. Stuffy suits were swapped for sleazy sport coats and boxy silhouettes that allowed for movement while also keeping that sense of elegance and dapper style. We all recognize that the “mobster” look evokes a sense of irresistible mystique that had the people of the time falling head over heels for them.
Graphic by Emily Yao
This era of glitz and glamour did not last very long, as the economic collapse of the world reared its ugly head; and when it hit, as the stocks nosedived, so did the hems. Before the U.S. joined the Allies during World War II, the country was in an era of economic turmoil never seen before due to overextension of credit usage and economic shakiness in Europe brought on after the First World War, and, as if someone snapped their fingers, all the fashion progress immediately receded. Women did not want to be bold, fierce, nor provocative in a time of such loss and danger, so they traded in their flapper dresses for long skirts.
We consistently see pivots to conservative fashion styles when the economy is down. The state of the economy had swung the pendulum even further than the pre–Gilded Age fashion standards, which had already been rather bearish. It was back to little exposed skin, cakey makeup, and necklines that crept higher and higher, so much so that women might as well have worn turtlenecks. Men’s sleazy, relaxed suits were thrown out in favor of the stuffy, layered suits of old-timers in order to bring in a sense of nostalgia and implied strength.
The Gilded Age to Great Depression pipeline was a very extreme one, so how about looking at a more relevant example? Picture this: it is 1999, and the turn of the millennium is upon us. People are bursting with excitement for what is on the horizon. New technology and consumer products are hitting our markets, globalization is at an all-time high, and that strange dot-com craze is making people millionaires. This optimistic outlook on the world prompted one of the most experimental moments in fashion history. Fashion houses paraded their logos and charged the highest prices for their pieces, and people bought them, for if you had money, this was your way to flaunt it. People layered tank tops with more tank tops and wore capris with heels. Sunglasses were the size of windshields, which was reasonable because the makeup was so sparkly it could melt stop signs.
Constant contact throughout the whole world allowed the diffusion of so many fashion aesthetics, like streetwear, Parisian chic, or Japanese gyaru. You saw it everywhere. Men once and for all ditched the suits in order to defy norms in favor of comfortability and ease of use (which I will never support).
However, in 2008, the greatest financial crisis hit the generation that was pioneering the experimental fashion scene, and overnight your Guccis and Louis Vuittons were nowhere to be seen. This year marked the start of the everlasting trend known as quiet luxury. Many people during this time were struggling to scrape by, and wealthy people did not want to seem disingenuous, so they traded logos for supreme quality and cuts. The clothes did not catch the attention of common folk and did not scream “wealth,” but those who were in the know knew the price. The rest of the world saw the elite dress in their minimal and modest styles and thought of stability and strength, so they emulated the looks, obviously with a much more acceptable price tag.
This is a good time to mention one of the chokeholds fashion brands launched during these times to increase profits: little luxuries. They were small, inconspicuous things, like makeup and candles, that were just expensive enough to feel nice and luxurious but not out of range for aspirational buyers. It allowed the average Joe to get that sweet taste of luxury, and ever since the launch of these items, it has been a telltale sign of the economy.
Fashion speaks for the economy when the economy is too alien for many of us. People want to show off the money when they have it, and when they lack it… well, there’s nothing to show off. Not all of us are economists; however, we all love seeing what the person next to us is wearing. So next time, I implore you to peep the fit of someone next to you and try gathering what’s going on with the boring economy. Then maybe you’ll realize that those Economics degrees are useless! ■
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