Last Splash

The gene pool could use a little Chlorine.

From the mind of my good friend Windhazel (I'm to lazy to bother linking, sorry) comes a light in the bleary uninspired day I'm having: a post about low rise jeans. Now, being a retail professional and "fit expert" I will promote a reasonable amount of low rise in jeans: the kind you find at Eddie Bauer or like stores catering to a population whose general age is 22 and above.
If the waistband sits approximately 2 fingers' width below your belly button, you are wearing them correctly (unless you have no hips, so you buy them a size or two too small and they are squishing you to create the "muffin top" look...in which case you are a very classy lady). They can be a very comfortable alternative for a girl like me, who is 5'9" tall and all legs. Long pants usually have a crotch that hits me at mid-thigh, causing me to hike them up almost above my true waist to fit properly, which is just not comfortable. However, I need the 34" and higher inseam, so lower rise jeans in tall fit perfectly. Especially the ones that are made to rise higher in the back than the front: thank you!

Now, I'm pretty sure this is not the type of low-rise jean Windhazel refers to, so let me share my theory on clothing manufacturers. Years ago, let's say we're nearing the decade mark, a strange thing happened. Analysts pinpointed that the highest amount of buying power came from the teenage range, particularly females between the ages of about 15-23, and surpassed both the young professionals demographic and the middle age female category. At the same time, Prozac started becoming overprescribed to young females (who were probably suffering from PMS but were misdiagnosed with depression) and Prozac and like anti-depressants makes you gain weight in the stomach region. So, as girls were hitting puberty, their bellies grew and their hips did not, and women with hips were buying less. So certain big manufacturers (the Gap is who I would call the worst offender, follwed closely by Abercrombie, J.Crew, and the Limited brand companies) began slowly changing the fit of their clothes to widen the waist and narrow the hips of women's pants. Since apparently they could not find a waist to sit the band on, they just gave up and said "if we make them so they fit lower, we can put smaller sizes in them b/c of the waistband measurement, and create value by making women feel they are smaller". And since the Gap, Abercrombie, and above mentioned stores were driving the retail market at the time, other retailers followed suit. Or so my theory.

But there's good news, Windhazel and those others that fear ultra low rise supremacy: recently the mid-range female category retook the top posting and is having a resurgence, and super high rise styles were featured in recent spring runway shows. I think we can proudly say that while the mom-jean is not back, women that want jeans to fit are making their voice heard with buying power and choosing jeans made by retailers like Eddie Bauer, J.Jill, and Lee. So, we will survive. And those nasty bad retailers that pushed pubic-rise jeans on us: they're about to do their time. Gap essentially lost it's base market (young professionals) just as they (YP's) started to make money, and to regain customers they are spending ALL of their money on Advertising instead of quality clothing, which means they are now selling at a much higher markdown rate and losing bottom line. Abercrombie's numbers are not nearly where they used to be b/c the surge in guest-service-focused companies means their "brand-representative" as opposed to "sales associate" approach is simply not working, and when was the last time you saw a line at The Limited?

posted by: Cannonball14 at 16:53 | link | comments (4) |
meow, the retail beast

Comments:

#1  21 November 2006 - 17:12

 

That's an interesting theory, and I hope you're right.

I have to wear low-rise jeans. Not superlow, as I'd rather other people not see my ass unless I decide they can, but just a bit lower than the typical low-rise. Regular rise jeans will go up a good 3 inches above my belly button and sometimes hit me between my waist and my boobs. Seriously. Low-rise will still often go up to my waist (above the belly button). I have hips. I have an ass. When I find jeans that will pretty much fit, the waist is too big (thank goodness for belts). So I hope you're right, and jeans will make their way back to fitting how they should.

And let's not even get started on how hard it is to find pants of any kind that have at least a 35" inseam (and aren't a regular-almost-to-my-boobs rise).

greeneyes

#2  22 November 2006 - 02:23

 

Well, I must thank you for that keen analysis and detailed history of jeans (or so you think), CB! I knew that you would have some insight into the jeans market.

Oh, and the other day I saw some young, human sized girl wearing them while she was sitting on the curb talking on her cell phone. Since I was behind her, I saw a good 7" of ass-crack. I thought, "I bet if she straightens her leg, I would be able to see the tops of her socks.

C'mon, now! Don't you feel a draft! Good freaking lord!

Windhazel

#3  22 November 2006 - 14:09

 

Oh...see now, my company changed our talls to be 35 1/2", so now I have no jeans that fit! Misses are 32". I need about a 34-34 1/2". What good is it doing me?

That's why I hate Old Navy...if it's anywhere close to fitting my hips and thighs, it's gaping around my waist. Come to think of it, maybe when I get pregnant I can buy my pants there. Aha!

Cannonball14

#4  22 November 2006 - 23:31

 

And here I only hated Old Navy because of their totally retarded commercials. Silly me!

P.S. Is it okay to say "retarded" in somebody else's blog? I mean, I say it in MY blog, but I've pretty much offended every group I can think of. I apologize I've committed yet another faux pas.

Windhazel

Comments: