The denim industry is no stranger to nostalgia. Most fits and washes are based on vintage styles—be it a pair of jeans found scavenging at a flea market or one unearthed from a mine.
In the current climate, it’s no surprise that designers and consumers continue to reflect fondly on the past. “Our society is witnessing a lot of strange things,” said Tilmann Wröbel, founder of the denim consultancy Monsieur-T, last week at Bluezone in Munich. “The Americans are suffering these days with dark subjects.”
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However, Wröbel emphasized that dwelling on the past isn’t the way forward. “Maybe you remember a more joyful time or might think that in the past things were easier and wealthier, but if we do some fact checking, the past wasn’t easier. The past wasn’t as fantastic as you think,” he said.
That perspective applies just as much to business as it does to life. “We all complain that denim isn’t what it used to be, but in reality, it’s far better today than it was 50 years ago,” he added. “Let’s think [positively. Let’s enjoy where we are now—and focus on the opportunities.”
Designers can introduce new aesthetics to denim, from digitally printed finishes to sport-inspired silhouettes, he said. Yet the most significant shifts may lie not in product, but in perception—specifically, how consumers relate to fashion itself.
In many respects, the way consumers are engaging with fashion is regressive. Where millennials once viewed life through filters and championed democratic fashion, Wröbel observes that Gen Z and younger consumers are increasingly moving away from those principles.
Exclusivity is back in fashion, particularly in retail experiences and product offerings. Wröbel noted that limited-edition drops and in-store exclusives are increasingly functioning as a form of social currency among Gen Z and younger consumers.
According to Wröbel, this shift is a direct response to the growing monotony of online shopping. Consumers, he said, are craving the “thrill of the search.”
“Remember to not make it so easy for your clients to get items of your creations. Your products have to be rare,” he said.
Despite AI bringing perfect and polished images to the forefront, Wröbel said the denim sector needs to take cues from real life and embrace imperfections. “Artificial images are inventing a perfect beauty no one believes in,” he said. “Anyone younger than 35 will know they’re looking at bullshit, and no one really desires such bullshit.”
Willy Chavarria’s campaigns—with their imperfect lighting and realistic styling—capture this youth-driven mood. “There’s no filters, no correction…they’re showing reality,” Wröbel said. He urged brands to ditch big budget photo shoots and perfection. “Authenticity is key. We must be transparent, less polished, keep it a bit rawer, and don’t [erase the] imperfections,” he said.
Wröbel added how imperfections are part of denim’s DNA and should be celebrated. “[Denim’s] irregular. It has no lasting qualities and when it comes to the pigment dyeing, it rubs off. We’re just reproducing those imperfections of the past,” he said.
Brands have an opportunity to highlight this unique quality of denim by selecting fabrics with imperfect textures and weaves. Wool blends with random weaving, loose weaves, super heavy ring spun fabrics and repair details are some of the ways Wröbel said brands can capture the mood.
