Fashion and Beauty 26th February 2023 by Jade Carpenter

Future Nostalgia: What Causes Trends To Come And Go?

We see trends come and go – and come back again…

Have you ever experienced nostalgia for a time you’ve never known? Like when you listen to a certain song and it just takes you back, maybe to the Summer Of ‘69?… Only you were never there in the first place. There is actually a term for that and it’s known as ‘anemoia’ (pronounced a-no-me-a), which means, nostalgia for a time you’ve never known.

Taylor Swift is good at making me feel nostalgic about times and emotions I’ve never quite experienced myself. She has a way of writing that makes you feel like every song can relate to your life, even if you’ve never been the owner of a holiday house in Newport.

I bet Taylor experiences a bit of anemoia too, she has previously admitted she sometimes writes from the perspectives of people she has never met, creating her own stories about the lives they led, or wish they had.

It must be something all authors experience at some point, the need to feel what their characters felt in order to document it on paper. There’s something special about tapping into an emotional connection to something so far from your own reality.

But it’s not only found in the words we listen to and the pages we read, this experience is a lot more universal than you may think. Take the 1990s for example, if you’ve lived through it, you more than likely experienced a wave of familiarity recently seeing claw clips, mom-jeans and double denim making a comeback. But as for those actually buying and wearing the look? Not all of them experienced it.

The ’90s aesthetic has taken over the internet, especially on TikTok, and made its way into the minds of Gen Z, making them want to recreate the era of the Rachel haircut and butterfly clips. New generations are yearning for the return of a time period they haven’t yet experienced, and marketers are creating the idealised versions of what that time looked like, both for those who miss the good old days and for those who were “born too late to a world that doesn’t care,” in the great words of Sandi Thom.

 

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Erica Bracken works freelance in PR & Marketing and explains what it is about nostalgia that sells so well.

“In essence, emotions are what drives consumer behaviour and playing with emotions is the superpower of marketing and advertising,” she says. “Nostalgia is just one of the feelings that brands can capitalise on to grab attention, build trust and boost sales.

“When done right, brands that tap into positive cultural memories from decades ago – what we ate, the music we listened to, the people we worshipped – can help consumers reconnect to something that once brought them joy and relive fond memories. Triggering these happy feelings is a proven formula for success. In fact, there’s even research proving that the feeling of nostalgia is so powerful that it can push people to make bigger purchasing decisions and spend more money.

“Added to this, research also says nostalgia helps counteract loneliness and anxiety and it give people warm, comforting feelings in times of stress and uncertainty. So, in the context of global pandemic, it makes sense why we’ve seen such a rise in trends that scream 80s.”

Think about the return of the UGG boot. I held on to my three pairs of knee-length UGGs from childhood in the hopes that one day my comfy booties would re-emerge as a staple for the cosy-core girlies, and finally that time is now. Nostalgia hit me hard and I got a pair of the ultra-minis, a new silhouette from what was hot back then. It’s giving the same feeling when you slip your feet in and trot down the town, feeling like you never took off your slippers. Plus anyone who was too young the first time around is also wanting a pair.

Erica explains, “To successfully use nostalgia marketing it’s not enough for brands to simply take one generation down memory lane. Success second time round can’t come as a carbon copy of what you have done before. The best examples of nostalgia marketing not only pull at heart strings but also place retro in a modern context – otherwise it just won’t make sense in today’s society and will fall flat.” This explains the platform UGGs people are loving in 2023!

Erica goes on, “Pokémon GO is a great example of balancing past and present. It links a beloved game from the 90s with the first real-life example of augmented reality. It ticked two important boxes; nostalgic happiness and exploration into something new and exciting.”

This smartphone game had people using their cameras to spot Pokémon out and about in their local areas. At the time it was so popular you could always see who was on the hunt for Pikachu on their daily walk.

It’s the power of making something feel both old and new, and we see it all the time. The trend cycle has mastered the art of making people need the coolest ‘vintage’ item, but in a modern form that makes it not very vintage at all really.

“Every generation thinks it invented retro,” Erica says. “Having grown up during the pandemic, Gen Z are also fatigued by social media and overstimulating technology and craving something real and authentic. They’re seeking simpler pre-social-media times.

“The ironic part is that it’s through social media that younger generations are making these nostalgic connections. Despite the fact they didn’t live through the decade itself, they feel they are bringing back something cool from past culture in new ways; on TikTok, streaming platforms, and online vintage and resale markets like Depop,” she adds.

Of course, we know the Kardashians are a marketing machine and they are no strangers to a touch of nostalgia in their campaigns to boost hype and sales. Kim in particular has used this with SKIMS multiple times already, bringing velour tracksuits back with the help of her early 2000s BFF Paris Hilton, and getting iconic supermodels of different generations together for another campaign – yes that included, Heidi Klum and Tyra Banks in the one shoot! At the time, she told daughter North, “You have no idea how iconic this is”, echoing the sounds of older generations noting to their children and grandchildren that the latest must-have item was also around when they were growing up.

There’s nothing new or wrong about the longing we sense for the past, but it is interesting how the past is sold to the future. The simple modernisations, marketing tactics and the ‘it’ girls who are seen using the product and deeming it cool once again often go unnoticed, but the marketing can be extremely clever if you’re aware of it. 

Often, the work marketers do is designed to fly under-the-radar and not scream “we are selling this to you”, but next time you see the trend cycle at work, keep an eye out for how they pumped a new lease of life into something once made extinct. Nothing is ever truly out of fashion.

Feature image via RF Studio / Pexels 

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