Tannin walks down the fashion stage

Domestic sales of jeans have dropped by 6% compared to last year. What is worrying is that some manufacturers and the pioneering think tank creators of VF Corp., Shepherd and Lee jeans have come up with unique and wear-resistant technology. Twill blue cotton.

Thirty years ago, the famous actress Brooke Shields famously said that she and her Calvin Klein jeans were dead. Nowadays, young women do not seem to be able to obtain enough denim, and even players have given up on uniform pants that became generations after the war.

Even Levi Strauss & Co, a synonym for jeans, is struggling with a 2% drop in revenue from the second quarter of last year, in terms of net profit, as sales in the United States have fallen by as much as 76% while also cutting 800 jobs. 20% of its non-retail and non-original jobs, as a plan, save $200 million annually.

"A 6% drop may not seem like much, but it is rare for denim to take this drastic drop. It is a commodity business that we buy it and add it to."

Trends for casual wear are all about comfort, and where denim is trying to find it. Retailers and fashion experts are not afraid of admitting a new look and creating “athleisure”. They are turning from teenage teenagers to tight-fitting leggings instead of jeans, and mothers show off their yoga wears and go out all day. At one time.

"There isn't a 'it' project going back to school like we did two years ago," said Dana Telsey, chief executive and chief research officer of the Telsey Group. "Whatever there are, including scorpions and dresses, and the tops of these crops, there seems to be work and sports tendencies. Sports and sportswear are definitely new everyday wear, no matter what age people are."

So, is the cowboy suffering from chronic death or just a vagrant fashion victim? Only time will tell us. Sales fell 6% from the same period last year, according to NPD Group and retailers.

"A 6% drop may not seem like much, but it is rare for denim to take this drastic drop, which is a commodity operation, we buy it and add it," said Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst at NPD Group. .

VF has already noticed the decline, and the head of the cowboy business with Scott Baxter recently said that Lee’s brand, which has a 60:40 ratio of women in the United States, suffered a decline of about 15% in sales to men. Interestingly, only 20% of the Wrangler's income comes from women and they see a single-digit increase in the Americas.

Baxter told investors that in the Americas, denim apparel companies are facing ongoing challenges "because of the continuing unfavorable trend of female denim."

Cowboy Innovation Center

In order to deal with the downturn of denim, VF said it will soon open a "Global Cowboy Innovation Center" but declined to give further details.

VF is not the only retailer who feels hurt. Piper Jaffray’s twice-yearly “teenager inventory” survey shows that teenage girls’ brand preferences in the past two years have changed from names like Levi’s, Guess, and American Eagle to names of athletes such as Nike and Lululemon. The Secrets of Athleta, Urban Outfitters and Victoria.

By Piper Jaffray's survey of wealthy teenage tights/Lululemon has become the top fashion trend for two consecutive seasons. Partly attributed to the downturn of the denim, according to Piper Jaffray's survey, there is a lack of innovation in fashion and fabric technology in the market in recent years.

Innovation is driving jeans companies to keep consumers diversified.

Joe's jeans are turning to "alternative manufacturing," and will introduce some non-denim items in the fall, including the use of "innovative textiles" in leggings. The company said that in July, recognizing leggings as the fastest growing segment of the market one.

The gap, which may be the trend of the reverse trend through sportswear retailer Athletea, is not new in accepting CNBC's denim fashion fatigue.

"Stylish denim is cyclical. At present, the trend of mid-high waist denim style, in addition to soft pants, denim is still the dominant category of Gap and Old Navy, and we are committed to continuous innovation," said spokesperson Edie Kissko.

However, NPD Group Cohen did not agree that the retailer is facing the risk of whether the "athleisure" romance has a lasting impact.

“This surprised the denim producers because they never really saw it,” Cohen said. “The trend of today will not come and go. They will come and go, so if consumers have moved away from denim It will be hard to win back.