Summer 2019 has come and gone, but not without leaving behind several fashion moments that helped heat up retail.
The season will go down as the one when a black and white polka dot dress from Zara went viral across the globe, boiler suits became the hottest one-piece, and consumers continued to show their allegiance to colorful fashion.
And based on recent sales and inventory data, Edited, the retail decision platform and retail data company, pinpointed which trends may have legs for Spring/Summer 2020.
Here’s a look at Edited’s round-up of the best performing fashion trends of Spring/Summer 2019.
Color denim
There’s more to love about denim than indigo. With minimalist ’90s colorways like beige, ecru and white coming into play, and major names in men’s wear like Louis Vuitton and Dior lightening up their color palette with pastels, denim took a turn toward pale natural shades.
According to Edited’s data, the amount of colored denim in men’s bottoms and outerwear combined, grew 28 percent year-over-year. Meanwhile, white jeans were a top-performing style in the women’s category. Neutral hues were favored for denim jackets with a 23 percent uptick.
Pale neutrals are sticking around, too. Recent collections at New York Fashion Week by Dion Lee, Ryan Roche and Eckhaus Latta were chock-full of layered head-to-toe neutral ensembles for men and women.
Utility
After a strong performance in Q1 that saw the number of mass market boiler suits grow 560 percent year-over-year, utility fashion continued to intrigue into the summer.
Topshop stocked the most inventory of the women’s one-piece, Edited reported, with steady arrivals from March to May. “This item saw a replenishment rate of 28 percent making it a hot contender for the fall season,” Edited stated.
Topshop intends to keep the momentum going with new arrivals, including a short sleeve black boiler suit with white contrast stitching and metal hardware, an ecru suit with a cinched waist and a button-front indigo suit with a matching belt. Sustainable brands like Ética and DL1961 are also suiting up for the trend this fall.
For men, utility comes in the form of cargo pants and shorts, which Edited said emerged as the trends to watch.
Midi lengths
Zara won the season with a $69.90 mini-length black and white polka dot dress. The frock spawned the Instagram account @hot4thespot (followed by 21.5k followers) and a slew of articles analyzing how the modest silhouette was, in part, responsible for the retailer’s 5 percent sales increase during the quarter.
And its success spurred a flurry of knock-offs and similar silhouettes. Midi lengths, Edited reported, became the “covetable shape for skirts and dresses,” increasing its footprint in stores by 75 percent within each category.
The silhouette’s versatility was part of its appeal. Fabrics and patterns that worked well for the silhouette included polka dots, animal print and satin, according to Edited. And retailers and brands showcased how the look can be dressed up and down. On its website, American Eagle paired its high-waisted slip midi skirt with snake printed slides, while its tie-dyed slit midi skirt was paired with skate sneakers and a relaxed knit top.
With Zara releasing an autumnal version its infamous dress—updated with a red and black leopard print—all eyes are on the dress to see if the trend can have repeat success.
Bright & loud
Color and prints maintained their popularity with Gen Z and millennial consumers, which view fashion as an extension of their personal brand and self-expression.
This summer, “highlighter hues” were the colors of choice for women’s swimwear. Edited said the number of neon color swimsuits increased 63 percent year-over-year. Men’s wear opted for richer colors. Primary colors were used to give garments like windbreakers a street style edge, while color blocked polos were a popular choice. Overall, Edited said color blocking increased 106 percent year-over-year.
New York Fashion Week confirmed that relevancy of tonal color blocking for Spring/Summer 2020. The Oscar de la Renta show layered a gauzy orange dress under a pink blazer, while Cynthia Rowley offered up a pant suit with one leg in baby blue and the other teal.
And the roar of animal print didn’t fade, either. Edited data showed that the number of animal print women’s tops and dresses increased 226 percent year-over-year during the summer months.