Where'd The Vibes Go? : My Take on Recession Swag

It is no secret that times are hard - it quite literally costs $8 for some eggs right now. GDP growth is slowing, and prices are not matching the situation. With Australia in a per capita recession, the swag of the people is changing. Swag is shaped by macroeconomic pressures - the state of the economy doesn’t just decide what we can afford, but also what feels appropriate to wear. In 2025, with whispers of global downturns and cost-of-living crises everywhere, the recessionary spirit is visible in the silhouettes on dance floors: blazers (AAAAAAAA) in the clerb, slimmer fits, longer hems, and micro-luxuries to cope. The return of business casual to the clerb and a loss of creativity is more than a quirky style pivot. It is a form of recession swag - or lack thereof!

Engel’s Law and the Consolidated Wardrobe

Engel’s Law (1857) holds that as incomes decline, the proportion of household spending devoted to necessities increases, leaving less for discretionary luxuries. Fashion reflects this directly. When disposable income contracts, swag consolidates. Consumers gravitate toward multipurpose pieces that justify their cost through versatility.

That’s why the blazer (AAAAAAAAAAA) has re-emerged as a staple, even in the clerb. It is not just business chic  - it is efficient. A jacket that carries one from the office to the club is Engel’s Law embodied in fabric. It is the same logic that makes resale platforms like Depop or Vinted surge during downturns: each purchase must stretch further, do more, signal both practicality and identity. This is a stark contrast to the clerb swag in times of economic boom. Take the 80s - the swag was vivid. Economies roared under deregulation: the nightclub uniform was vivid, excessive, deliberately wasteful. Sequined dresses, oversized power suits, neon palettes, gold chains - a pure Veblen flex. Clothes weren’t purchased for utility; they were purchased to be discarded, to demonstrate surplus. And even if there was a blazer in sight; it was really dope, guys.

Hell yeah.

Maslow’s Hierarchy: From Logos to Security

Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (1943) helps explain why recession swag looks the way it does. In times of plenty, consumers purchase at the top of the pyramid — self-actualisation and esteem. Luxury logos, maximalist silhouettes, and conspicuous displays of wealth (Veblen goods) signal status.

But in recessions, consumers slide down Maslow’s pyramid. The people can't even afford a Hass Avocado now (I'm looking at you, Woolies!) The need for safety, security, and belonging reasserts itself. Swag responds with sobriety: neutral palettes, durable fabrics, silhouettes that suggest control rather than flamboyance. Hence the revival of quiet luxury, pared-down tailoring, and body-conscious fits that cling close to the form - controlled, restrained, protective. The message is balance, not excess. 

Even Thugger don't be dressing like he did in peak economic conditions. 

The Hemline, Lipstick, and Other Indexes

Swag is an essence - you are born with it or you aren't. But I am trying to put my degree to good use so I guess one could say swag's relationship to economics has long been captured in semi-serious “indexes.”

  • The Hemline Index (Taylor, 1926): skirt lengths rise in booms and fall in recessions. While not empirically perfect, the pattern persists —-today’s longer skirts and tailored trousers echo the contraction of optimism.

  • The Lipstick Index (Lauder, 2001): when large luxury purchases decline, consumers shift to smaller indulgences. In 2025 this translates not only to lipstick but to bold earrings, and affordable perfumes. Prestige shrinks in size but remains potent.

  • The Blazer Index (2008, revived now): This sone of my personal indexes. When workwear bleeds into swag/nightlife, the economy is struggling. After the financial crisis, blazers and peplum tops became night-out staples. Today, the same signal is re-emerging - a collapse of occasion-specific wardrobes into one cross-functional uniform. AAAAAAAAAAA. Well, who am I to judge. This brand is all about acceptance, so wear your blazer guys. 

  • The Tight Dress Index (2025): as Nylon observed, going-out clothes are literally shrinking. Slimmer, body-conscious styles reflect both nostalgia and economic discipline. Lil Wayne in horrendous, horrendous skinny jeans during the 2008 crash was not just a style turn - it was an early symptom of broke times.

These indices might be playful, but collectively they reveal something real: swag adapts materially and symbolically to scarcity.

Crisis and Creativity

As Vogue Australia noted, fashion in crisis oscillates between imagination and instinct. The 1930s gave us rayon and home sewing patterns - resourcefulness under duress, the possibility to create your own swag. The postwar “New Look” exploded with fabric as relief from rationing. The 1990s recession produced Aerosmith grunge and raw minimalism. The 2008 crash birthed quiet luxury, stripped of overt branding. Each crisis recalibrates fashion’s balance between utility, aspiration, and identity.

2025 sits in that same lineage. The blazer in the club, the tight dress as armor, the rise of resale, and the preference for smaller luxuries all form a coherent economic portrait. The swag has not gone quietly into the night; it's adapted to scarcity.

And I will be sat here patiently waiting for the return of 2016 economic boom swag.

And with a lighter.

To burn all your blazers.

HAHAHHA JK

(no, I'm not.)

My Take

Engel explains why swag capacity shrinks. Maslow explains why swag sobers up.  The pattern is undeniable.

Truly, swag cannot be condemned into indexes and economic theories, but it is interesting to see how swag adapts to the duress of our times. I always like to think that the dopest of people can still look fresh even in times of economic turmoil - namely QUEEN Vivienne Westwood, who we shall discuss next week!

I would say don't let money stop you from being swag - which is true. But I am the Founder of this brand and I will tell you that in the same way money can buy happiness, on the 22nd of September, it can also buy you heaps of swag. Because we will be dropping our new collection. And if you buy it you will be so fresh, twin.

Peace, love and swag,

Alex Prieto - Founder of ¡MIJA!

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