After the 2008 recession, people had less money to spend on essentials and luxury clothing. We saw a market where clothes shifted to be darker, less colourful, and less adorned with brand logos and brands, to a plainer look. There was a shift from luxury brands to cheaper outlets like H&M, ASDA, and Next. The rise of fast fashion, where you can fill up your wardrobe for weirdly cheap prices, is great for uni students, especially women, since there’s (the political and gendered) expectation that women can't repeat a dress for formal events like balls, whereas men can repeat outfits as much as they like without anyone batting an eye.
It should be noted that female politicians regularly go through this scrutiny with what they wear as a tactic to distract from their political views and policy on every level of politics.
"... a weird exception can be made for male political leaders when they're under the microscope and at war."
But whilst men’s outfits usually don’t get much attention, a weird exception can be made for male political leaders when they’re under the microscope and at war. For example, in 2022, Volodymyr Zelensky, president of Ukraine, a country which is currently fighting a war against Russia, stated he wouldn’t wear a suit until the war in Ukraine had ended, to show solidarity with his troops. Since then, Zelensky has regularly been called out and undermined for not wearing suits and put under criticism for his choice of clothing, in the media and by fellow politicians.
Many reporters have asked about whether he’ll wear a suit or formal dress to his next conference instead of the war he and his people are currently fighting against Russia. Zelensky has had to concede a little and start wearing outfits similar to suits, which has, in and of itself, sparked a discussion about whether his outfits are or aren't suits. Again, distracting from the armed conflict and danger Zelensky and his people are fighting.
So next time you turn on the TV and see a politician talking, or are in the streets looking around at what people are wearing, stop and think about what everyone’s wearing. It could be political...