Cozy Couture: The Rising Trend of Loungewear in Lockdown

With more people working from home, social media usage rising a whopping 76% (Obviously) and ecommerce now our primary connection with retail, consumer culture in 2020 has taken a dramatic shift. 

Just one of the many consumer trends emerging from the lockdown is the rise in comfort clothing brought on by digital retail therapy. Loungewear has faced a significant uptake in consumer demand with 433 percent growth amid global lockdown procedures, with comfort-first brands like Ugg and Crocs being two of the highest performing brands in LoveTheSales' “Lockdown Economy” report. 

According to the LoveTheSales report, other products in the comfy catalog also reached new heights of growth, with hoodies (a 267 percent rise in consumer demand), sweatshirts (117 percent) and joggers (116 percent) making a significant impact on buying decisions. Waist-up videoconferencing is also influencing our buying decisions, with casual tops dominating 167 percent growth in lockdown and bottoms, somewhat embarrassingly, only 39 percent. 

This trend doesn’t look like it’s going anywhere any time soon. GlobalWebIndex states that most individuals surveyed across 17 countries believed it would take 6 months or more to solve the global crisis, almost ensuring the loungewear craze to bed-down properly in the modern licensing and retail business. 

Socks, for example, have always been a licensing mainstay. Now, after bringing out the latest line of “SpongeBob SquarePants” essentials, the Swedish lifestyle company Happy Socks is proving that demand for certain fashion items is still alive and well. Or, as Lauren Bravo of The Independent states, “socks are the new shoes.”  

Over 89 percent of global digital consumers are looking to brands for lockdown tips and actively engaging with brands to share their life stories (GlobalWebIndex), and the loungewear trend is no exception. Influencers are looking to create new content to adapt to the stay-at-home culture, offering (more) honest insights into their  

In 2018, the global sock market was valued at $11.7 billion with a growth forecast of 24.16 by 2025 according to a report published by Zion Market Research in 2019. Today, this figure could be facing an uncharted leap. 

Online clothes shopping continues to increase 19 percent across the board according to GlobalWebIndex, and with more time in-doors almost guaranteed, the loungewear trends emerging across Instagram and ecommerce is only going to create more opportunities for brands to service significant consumer demand for comfort in lockdown.