Stranger Things fans are flocking to buy this item
By Wed, Oct 16, 2019
Forget Vogue. TV is the new fashion bible.
Stranger Things, Peaky Blinders and Fleabag were a big influence on what consumers bought last years they rushed to emulate characters from their favorite TV shows.
Sales of slim fit Levi’s LEVI, +1.52% were up 8% as viewers channeled Winona Ryder’s 1980s-retro look in cult Netflix series Stranger Things 3, according to a new report.
The new series of 1920s gangster drama Peaky Blinders, which aired in August, sparked a 25% increase in sales of flat caps, while fans of Phoebe Waller-Bridge, the creator and star of Emmy Award-winning dark comedy Fleabagsaw sales of black jumpsuits soar by 66%.
The TV-inspired trends is revealed in the latest retail report from U.K. department store John Lewis, which identifies the key trends of the year by analyzing consumer tastes from August 2018 to August 2019.
“The influence of these shows spread beyond the water cooler and into customers’ wardrobes,” the report noted.
The seventh edition of the report, published on Wednesday, comes at a challenging time for the U.K. retailers which are struggling with the increase in wages and a tax on stores called business rates and a sharp fall in shopper numbers as more consumers buy their goods online.
In October, John Lewis Partnership, which also operates the supermarket chain Waitrose and is owned by its employees, posted its first half-year loss since 1972 in September and slashed staff bonuses to their lowest level in 65 years in the face of tough trading.
The Economic uncertainty and stress of Britain’s potential exit from the European Union could be one reason why the report saw an almost 30% increase in the sale of premium Lego for adults. The maker of the iconic building blocks has published a mindfulness book called Build Yourself Happy: The Joy of Lego Play, and sets for grown-ups such as the Lego Architecture line which recreate to scale famous buildings such as the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C.
Adults also embraced the trend for tidying up, inspired by Japanese decluttering expert Marie Kondo’s Netflix NFLX, -0.45% series which encourages only keeping items which “spark joy”. Sales of storage containers rose by 47%, including baskets fashioned from natural materials such as water hyacinth which were one store’s best-sellers.
The Government’s forthcoming ban on plastic straws in England—which comes into effect next year—pushed sales of eco-friendly and stainless steel versions up by 1573%. John Lewis also said it had stopped selling drones as of May 2019, following disruptions at London Airports last year.
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