Young People in Japan Say Jeans are Out - According to Business Trends
Youth in Japan are saying "I don't have a single pair of jeans." Comments from young people in Japan about jeans are that they are heavy and difficult to dry, uncomfortable, and the pockets are too small for smartphones.
I was surprised to learn that wearing jeans puts you in the "old" category. I think of jeans as being timeless, but apparently the youth of Japan are rejecting jeans. According to business trends in Japan, the number of jeans sold per year has shrunk by 30 per cent in the last 20 years, according to Urban Life Metro. The iconic JEM store in Shibuya, Tokyo (flagship store of the Jeans Mate chain) closed after 30 years in business. A hamburger shop, Blue Star Burger, took over the space.
Jeans had their start as work clothes for American miners. They appeared as a fashion item in the 1970's in Japan, with vintage jeans coming out in the 1990's. The Japan Jeans Association holds the "Best Jeanist" contest every year since 1984. Will that soon be coming to an end? If jeans are only for old people, the good thing is that there are many old people in Japan.
Are people still wearing jeans where you live? Is this trend only in Japan?
9 comments:
I was just doing errands this weekend and realizing that I was absolutely the only person wearing jeans. The women were all in leggings or sweat pants and the men were all in basketball shorts and sweat pants. I had thought of jeans as pretty generic and timeless myself, but I guess that just shows my age. Although there were women who were definitely older than me in leggings, so maybe it just shows when I stopped paying attention!
I got my first pair of jeans when I was 11. Since then I have chosen jeans for casual wear, and embraced jeans made out of 'stretch denim' when I had reached a mature age. It is so much more comfortable to sit on the floor with your legs folded under you (the typical Japanese way of sitting on the floor) if there is a bit of stretch in them.
However, I find denim too hot in summer and too cold in winter so jeans are only worn in spring and autumn here in Japan.
Now that I think about it, I am probably the only one in the family who wears jeans...
Interesting question! I am going to have to have a look around next time I am in town. I don't actually own a pair of denim jeans anymore, but I don't know what everyone else is wearing.
People around me are wearing Jeans. But if you look at it, young may not be wearing it. Even though the shape of Jeans is trendy,I never though that the time would come when Jeans themselves would become unpopular.
I like Jeans so I will continue to wear them. I'm not young and no problem.👖
Lots of young people here wear leggings, some even jeggings, leggings to look like jeans! Jeans seem to be very popular here, maybe that is changing with the time we have had at home with people opting for comfort.
The last time I went looking to buy jeans, what they were selling were those with holes here and there. Most of my jeans have flowers and leaves appliqued over the holes. Carrying one's phone in a pocket might not be a good idea if you have to use a squat toilet in a public facility.
When I was a kid you could not even wear pants to school. Even at home polyester was the fabric of choice and the only ones wearing jeans was farmers. I started wearing jeans in the early 70s. Now, you are right. Just about everyone is wearing leggings. In my elder opinion there are lots wearing them that are just a little on the heavy side to wear those skin tight pants, but what do I know. I wear boot cut yoga pants almost always. I found a pair that was what I think is a perfect fit and bought (over time) about 20 of them. T-shirts, yoga pants and Sketchers are my uniform now. lol.
xx, Carol
They're still wearing jeans in Michigan. That might ease up some when the weather is warmer and to be honest, I haven't checked out the campus. But at least those of an age are!
Guess I'm officially old now! I wouldn't know what to wear if it wasn't for jeans half of the time.
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