Introduction
As history goes on, our attire has been changing and increasingly becoming more casual. From the 1500s to the early 1900s, the attire was dresses for women and button-down shirts with slacks for the men. As times changed, more women started wearing pants, and men began wearing jeans.
This casual trend continued throughout the decades. T-shirts and jeans became the staple outfit for a lot of people. Then, in the 90s and early 2000s, a lot of women began wearing matching tracksuits and loungewear sets, and that has brought us to where we are today.
Leggings, sweatpants, and sweatshirts have become more popular to wear out on the street. Also, people are taking their gym outfits and wearing them doing their day to day activities. People want to be comfortable and stylish, and athleisure is one of the best ways to do that.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, people began wearing casual clothes every day because they were working or doing school from home. This led to many people wanting to be as comfortable as possible and buying a lot more loungewear and athleisure.
Athlesiure can mean many things, but in this article, athleisure is any form of workout wear or loungewear that people are wearing outside of working out or laying in bed.
Here is a list of six reasons to include more athleisure in your brand.
- Comfortable
- Casual
- Easy
- Can be elevated
- Pandemic’s connection
- Continue to be trendy
1.Comfortable
Many people would prefer to be comfortable in the clothes they wear, especially when it is just going to the grocery store, or sitting at home. If they do not have to dress up, they might prefer to wear leggings or even matching loungewear. There is probably nothing more comfortable than wearing a sweatshirt and sweatpants out in public.
However, some people may not like wearing sweatpants and a sweatshirt, as they may feel it is too casual. In which case they could wear a pair of leggings instead of jeans, or a workout set and still feel presentable. No one would know if you were going straight from pilates class to the grocery store.
2. Casual
Of course, loungewear is considered a very casual outfit. For a lot of occasions and activities, the dress code may be casual. People can choose to wear jeans and a t-shirt, but there are many ways to wear athleisure in a casual scenario.
It is also a great way to go straight from a workout class to lunch, or vice versa. Including athleisure that is both comfy and cute would satisfy this need and make sure your customers are feeling good in and out of the gym.
3. Easy
Some outfits require a lot of thought to be put into them, making sure the shirt and bottoms match and making sure they fit good. With athleisure or loungewear, it is easy to find a matching set, or just throw on a stylish sweatshirt. There is not much thought put into getting dressed, and your customers will be very comfortable. Throwing on an outfit never got so easy.
4. Can be elevated
Activewear can easily be dressed up or down depending on what the customer wants or needs. Throwing on a jacket or accessories can help elevate the look. The outfit is still very comfortable and yet remains stylish. Pairing a matching workout set, like leggings and a sports bra or tank, with a jacket and gold jewelry can take the outfit up a notch so it looks like a put-together outfit while maintaining the comfort level. You could even throw in a pair of casual heels or flats to step up the outfit.
Matching loungewear has also become extremely popular. Whether it is matching leggings and a sports bra, sweatpants, and sweatshirt, or flowy tank and shorts, these sets are everywhere. The matching part makes it look put together, and again, makes it so easy to just throw the outfit on without worrying about it looking good together.
5. Pandemic’s connection
The Covid-19 pandemic was a hard time for a lot of people due to the devastation it caused, and on top of that, everyone suddenly had to work or take classes from home. For a while, in a lot of countries, there was a lockdown where no one was going anywhere and most places were closed. There was no need to wear business casual to work, or jeans to class if everything was through the computer and everyone was at home.
I know I definitely was a fan of athleisure during the pandemic because I could just wake up, throw on some leggings and a sweatshirt, and join my Zoom class. Many people felt this same way. Comfort was at its peak, and people were not afraid to go to the grocery store in the same outfit they had been lounging in at home.
This will have an impact on the trend going forward since there was such an increase in popularity in loungewear after the pandemic started.
6. Continue to be trendy
The trend of matching sweatsuits became very popular in the late 90s and early 2000s with the velour designer tracksuits that Paris Hilton and others would wear. This has since evolved into matching sweatsuits, as well as leggings and sports bra sets for anyone to wear. A lot of trendy people that are on social media have been seen wearing these different sets, and these influencers pass it on to their viewers.
This trend is also not going away anytime soon because everyone is enjoying being comfortable and being able to run to lunch in their leggings and tanks. Of course, some instances may require nicer attire. However, it is still nice knowing it is okay to be comfy and cute at the same time.
Conclusion
Wearing athleisure every day is not going to be for everyone, but there has been an increase in popularity in it. The pandemic is one of the biggest reasons for this increase because of the number of people changing their lifestyles.
Almost all of the largest fashion companies have been putting out different loungewear lines to keep up with demand, so it would help your company to remain competitive. A lot more people are wearing sweatpants and leggings out and about, especially because there are a lot of ways to make it look chic, and not lazy anymore.
This trend is going to be around for a long time, and there is always a need for cute, comfortable clothing, even if it is just to wear around the house. People want to feel confident in everything they wear, and that includes athleisure.
