It’s been said that fashion is the ‘barometer of social progress’. It helps to discover how we think and feel and how flexible our thoughts are on different social issues.
More recently, gender fluid fashion is becoming more popular and prevalent, breaking perceptions of fashion’s traditional frameworks of ‘Women’s’ and ‘Men’s’ fashion lines. Alex York, writing for StyleCaster, ‘When brands are willing to acknowledge the social construction of gender and the ways in which they can construct their own ideas, acceptance for gender expression will grow both within and outside of the queer community.’
Here, some examples of gender-fluid fashion brands making their mark:
ClHu is a quirky abbreviation of the brand’s tagline and value proposition, ‘Clothes for Humans’. Their website promotes the brand’s ‘Celebrating the boundless spectrum of self-expression: No rules, just clothes.’ The brand launched in March 2022 with a 28 piece collection of cargo pants, utility skirts and tank dresses. Furthermore, the brand eschews traditional clothes sizing in favour of enabling customers with the freedom to explore personal fit preferences. “It’s pretty simple — a horizontal line with colors that move through the color spectrum from left to right as the size increases from a youth 10-12 to an adult XL,” founder Maria Borromeo explains.
Sans Gêne was founded by Caroline McCaul this year. The brand name is French for ‘without constraints.’ The brand empowers consumers to make their own fashion decisions. Shoppers can select from unisex, minimalist binary-blurring garments such as Sports Luxe wear.
ALTU, created by Joseph Altuzarra is “a genderful brand that encompasses the plurality of an individual’s presented identity, and encourages positivity within the spectrum of gender presentations and expressions.” The brand’s collection includes miniskirts, tank tops and cutout dresses, worn by the likes of singer Troye Sivan wore to the 2021 Met Gala, ALTU “encourages the ‘trying on’ of identities as fluidly as we do our clothing.”
If you’d like to hear about the latest fashion trends, speak to Janine, Amy and Natalie at Permanser Consulting.