Gender-fluid styles have been slowly perpetuating throughout the fashion scene, mostly thanks to Gen-Z consumers who are redefining the present and future of fashion.
We’ve noticed many people roaming the streets in clothing, which can be described as both a rebellion from the dated socially constructed norms and an outward expression of their personal identity.
Genderless fashion has been known to make a regular appearance during many fashion weeks, but half of the Gen-Z consumers globally have been habitually typing the terms’ genderless’ and ‘gender-neutral’ when online shopping.
If you’ve recently visited places such as North America, Europe, Japan, or South Korea, then chances are you’ve definitely witnessed a good number of men in sheer shirts, pleated kilts, and femme dresses, as well as women in shapeless tomboy styles.
These are the ideal places where genderless fashion is taking over, and many fashion brands who reside in these areas have been making a lot of profit from styles, that were at one point in time seen as subversive, but are now simply perceived as a changed definition of the term ‘normal’.
The distinction in shapes, placements of buttoning tabs, textiles, and specific color palettes and prints are no longer separating genders, but It doesn’t matter if you’re male, female, or non-binary, any style of clothing can be your game.
The world we live in now has a more evolved acceptance towards sexual orientation and gender identity, where everyone is being more open-minded to labels such as gay, lesbian, pansexual, transgender, or non-conforming.
With that in mind, clothing is also getting the freedom of being labeled gender-neutral or genderless. You might think that unisex, a fashion term that’s been around since the 1960s has already met that standard, but you would be wrong.
Unisex fashion has always been very limited in range and has only ever offered minimalist casual designs. However, genderless fashion is a much bigger story that serves to offer unlimited variety in styles, executed in custom shapes that can host opposite body shapes.
Many small brands have been known to introduce gender-neutral clothing into their collections, but internationally renowned houses have also taken a dive into the new reality of fashion.
Maison Margiela has sent both male and female models down the runway in skirts and high-cut boots, and Christian Louboutin has expanded its size runs by producing high-heeled boots in men’s sizes.
While these big houses are certainly embracing gender-neutral in their collections, they do still offer gendered clothing, which from a business perspective answers the call for a variety of consumers with different identities.
But why stop at just clothing? Fashion businesses have more factors to consider than just products. Marketing, visual merchandising, and online store features can also play a crucial role in this new reality.
For example, Depop gives users the option of choosing whether they want to shop by gender categories or genderless. Even Marni collaborated with Uniqlo on a collection, where its marketing campaign presented men and women wearing a mix of different styles.
To sum up, Gen Z has set the tone for the future of fashion and has made it loud and clear that a third player, which is gender-neutral is going to get the universal spotlight it so relevantly deserves.
Many brands have responded to this cultural shift, but there’s always room for more ideas, which many members of the gender-fluid club can offer. That is why companies should be bringing them on board because who better to help a brand adopt this new way of designing than people who have adopted it for themselves?