Underdressed and unbothered

Nobody ever panic-bought an outfit for a Tuesday on the sofa. Fashion stores, dress accordingly.

For as long as anyone can remember, fashion moved to the beat of youth. Well, there's a problem. They stopped going out, and with that, stopped worrying about what to wear. Clothing is in crisis.

Under-25s, fashion's engine room, are pulling back faster than any other age group. Their purchase conversion rate has dropped from 52% to 49%, the biggest fall across all ages. Fear of the job market among 18-24s has jumped from 47% to 52% year on year. Pressing buy carries more weight when your income feels uncertain. Do I really need it? Could I find something on Vinted? What if I need the cash? These weren't part of a 21-year-old's shopping experience five years ago. They are now.

But money is only half the story. Under-25s are a digital generation with fewer reasons to leave the house. They're the least likely age group to go out six or more times a week. 37% say they struggle to find clothes suited to their lifestyle. 30% are unsure what to buy compared to a few years ago. The occasions that once triggered a purchase, the wedding, the holiday, the big night out, are becoming rarer. All down. The outfit trigger is dying, and nothing has replaced it.

When young people do buy, they want trainers, casual tops and jeans. Everyday staples, not occasion dressing. The top reasons they give for losing interest? Saving, fewer outings and prefer comfy. The fast fashion engine that ran on constant wardrobe refresh has lost its fuel.

Your competition isn't other brands. It's saving.

If you lose the young, you lose the edge. The people who used to set trends have stopped buying them. Brands competing on price alone will find the problem isn't affordability, it's relevance. And anyone treating "staying in" as temporary should look at the data again. This is structural.

Fashion is still designing for desk to bar to Bali. These are, it should be noted, fictional journeys undertaken by fictional people in Netflix scripts, written by other people who also work from home in joggers. Have your buying teams caught up?