Leggings survive

ADVENTUROUS: ATHLEISURE-WEAR GETS NEW LIFE WITH CUTOUTS

- Hein Kaiser

Since they first launched into popular culture in the '80s, leggings became the hero of every-wear.

The gym, the track, the kitchen and dressed up to go on date night. It's been a shape enhancing adventure across decades.

But alas, Gen Z's changing all of that. Sweatpants, cargos and wide leg trousers are gaining ground once held by leggings. Silhouettes are changing to reduced body conscious styling. And the numbers tell a story.

According to a report by retail analytics platform Edited, leggings made up 46.9% of all athleisure bottoms in 2022. By 2025, that figure had dropped to 38.7%.

Unlike Gen Zs, designers, however, are not ready to write the legging off completely. Instead, Johannesburg designer Heidi du Toit of Heidi Couture and Hollywood Costumes said that the legging problem is not functionality but fatigue and she said that there are ways to give it renewed relevance beyond pure utility.