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Retailers seek gold in '80s 'trash'
Stores are trying to entice teens with polka dots, day-glo, funk and jellywear. But will it work?
January 23, 2004: 1:13 PM EST
By Parija Bhatnagar, CNN/Money staff writer

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Remember the "Flashdance" look -- tank tops and oversized sweatshirts with the collar torn off? Or the old 1980s Madonna gear -- mesh shirts, tiny minis, day-glo tube socks and jelly bracelets?

Come spring and this '80s fashion revival will be showing at the shopping mall near you.

Retailers are notorious for recycling old fashion trends in a bid to move merchandise, but they have become more pressured than ever to tap trends faster, and to get them right. Some merchants are still having a hard time hitting the jackpot.

Retailers are bringing back the tube socks.  
Retailers are bringing back the tube socks.

"Trends come and go very rapidly. The problem is that they're not catching on for a longer period of time," said Marshal Cohen, industry analyst with NPD Fashionworld, which tracks trends in the clothing and footwear industries.

"We've gone through the Mod look with peasant blouses and last year we saw ... vintage jeans and T-shirts," said Adrienne Tennant, who tracks retailers for Wedbush Morgan Securities. "The '80s theme plays nicely to teen shoppers."

That could be great news for Hot Topic, Pacific Sunwear, Urban Outfitters and Abercrombie & Fitch -- chains that thrive, or not, by catering to fickle teens who spend like there's no tomorrow.

According to Teenage Research Unlimited (TRU), a market research firm that tracks teen shoppers, teen-agers spent a whopping $175 billion on clothes, footwear, music and electronics gadgets in 2003. That's up 3 percent from 2002.

"Thanks to unique circumstances -- a great deal of disposable income paired with fewer recurring debts -- the teen segment tends to have a much bolder attitude toward spending than does the general population," TRU vice president Michael Wood wrote in a recent report.

But while teens spent more overall, 13- to 17-year olds spent 3 percent less on clothes last year, $20 billion, down from $22.7 billion in 2002.

To be sure, chains such as Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF: Research, Estimates), American Eagle Outfitters (AEOS: Research, Estimates) and Wet Seal (WTSLA: Research, Estimates) all suffered during the holiday shopping season from a lack of distinctive merchandise that would excite their customers.

"The focus shifted away from clothes to accessories such as cell phones and other gadgets. This is a huge problem for some of the teen merchants," said Cohen. "Teens today are very image-oriented and it's important for them to be knowledgable about the latest technology, and own it, in order to look cool."

In a market that's already highly competitive, some analysts think this year's ode to the '80s could give teens the fashion uniqueness they crave and retailers the "oomph" needed to spur clothing sales.

"The 80s is about color, color, color," said Cohen. "When business gets tough, retailers use color to entice the customer because that's the first thing that attracts the buyer."

Jelly shoes and nurse minis

" '80s trash" is how one participant described the products at last week's Industry 212 trade show in New York, where about 600 apparel and accessories suppliers from around the country exhibited what they hope will be hot spring and summer looks for teens and young adults.

The 80s -inspired jelly shoes and jelly pumps.  
The 80s -inspired jelly shoes and jelly pumps.

Shoe designer Jeffrey Campbell, who sells his collection to trendy chains such as Urban Outfitters (URBN: Research, Estimates), showcased a '60s and '80s inspired look in very bright colors that marked the return of jelly shoes, multi-colored jelly pumps and funky floral rain boots.

The lollipop color trend reminiscent of '80s kitsch was also apparent in the new Steven line of pumps for women from shoe retailer Steven Madden. "The hot colors for both day and evening are fuchsia, orange and yellow, gold and silver," said spokeswoman Marisol Lake.

California-based accessories supplier Loungefly featured another '80s trend -- knee-high tube socks. And polka dots and stripes are showing up on everything from clothes to bags and wallets.

The military nurse mini dress from UFO.  
The military nurse mini dress from UFO.

Meanwhile, urban clothing maker UFO, which supplies retail chains Hot Topic and Urban Outfitters, predicts the retro "military nurse" minidress will be a hot seller for girls this summer. For guys, industry folk say the big winner could be Olympics-inspired soccer shirts.

But some fashions may be better off if they don't resurface at all. Heard of the Japanese gothic Lolita dress? Apparently the "playful and romantic" party dress -- an edgy black and red ensemble -- is a rage with teen girls in the United States.

Will the 80s revival stick?

NPD's Cohen said it's a tough trick for the chains. The most successful retailers have to constantly update their products and move quickly to appear unique to their customers, he said.

Sales at Hot Topic and Pacific Sunwear (PSUN: Research, Estimates) have been on fire much of the past year for that very reason. Hot Topic (HOTT: Research, Estimates) saw sales rise 10 percent at stores open at least a year in December, while Pacific Sunwear's "comparable store" sales jumped 12 percent for the month.

Olympics-inspired soccer shirts (such as these from eric & talia) could be a hot trend for guys this summer.  
Olympics-inspired soccer shirts (such as these from eric & talia) could be a hot trend for guys this summer.

Both companies are nimble when catering to the finicky tastes of teen shoppers. They buy domestically, meaning they can get products faster and tap into fashion trends more quickly than competitors; speed that's key to being successful in this sector, analysts said.

Said Wedbush Morgan Securities' Tennant, "At the end of the day, people pay for differentiation. That's the lesson for retailers."  Top of page




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Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.