All Things Vintage: The Future of Vintage?
As clothing from the 90s and earlier decades becomes increasingly rare, a question is circulating through the vintage community: Which clothing, not yet vintage, will have vintage value* in ten years?
To find out, we interviewed well-known vintage sellers, analyzed past trends, and now we reveal which future vintage treasures you should (perhaps) hold onto!
* "Vintage" is, by definition, any piece of clothing that is at least 20 years old. By "value," we mean both monetary value (how much money a garment brings) and personal value.
Grails will be Grails... or not?
There's no question that vintage clothing that is already sought after and highly contested will still be valuable in ten years. But even here, there are ups and downs – notable examples from the recent past include Snapback Caps or Tommy Hilfiger gear from the 90s: they are still popular, but their hype from 2010-2015 has shrunk from exorbitant prices to a (once again) affordable level.
Snapback Caps: An evergreen
Today's classics are definitely becoming rarer year by year: According to the BVSE (Federal Association for Secondary Raw Materials and Disposal), even in 2020, "only" 60% of donated clothing ended up in the second-hand market. The remaining clothing is recycled (25%) and destroyed (15%).
Therefore, AnniethingVintage from Düsseldorf also insists on the increasing value of current classics: According to the vintage seller, one should “definitely keep Starter jackets, Nike pieces [and] Band Shirts well” because these would no longer be affordable in ten years.
Starter Jacket @ Double Double Vintage
The consistent demand for said Starter jackets suggests which current clothing might also gain value: high-quality pieces for which people are willing to pay more because they will last longer (and have personal memories attached to them).
Quality over Quantity
Luke, also known as Relics Vintage from Frankfurt, also believes that quality has a golden (vintage) future among upcoming clothing: "I'm not entirely sure what will be trendy in ten years. But I believe the absolute prerequisite will be high quality. So anything fast fashion won't make it."
The past also shows this: mass-produced and poorly made clothing existed even before 2000. But, of course, people aren't looking for 'that one cheap brand from their youth' where every piece of clothing broke after only half a year – or, in the case of current fast fashion products, disintegrates even faster (and probably won't even last ten years).
"Clothing that is already valuable and expensive will not lose its value," believes Noah, also known as Advintage Hotdogs, who, with 26 years of vintage store experience, has seen many trends come and go. As an example of high-quality brands that have enduring appeal, the Hamburg resident mentions the brand Best Company: "Three years ago, I still had to explain to everyone that it was awesome stuff. But now younger people have discovered it." Quality seems to be making a comeback.
Outdoor Wear from Acronym (2018)
It gets even more niche (and therefore inevitably rarer) with Vince from Ishincroyable: The vintage enthusiast suspects that "small European heritage outdoor brands" will be highly sought after in ten years. Why? "Because they did so many things right in the 2000s," but are currently still under the radar for many. We're also adding sports apparel and tech wear to the mix, where, just like with outdoor clothing, innovations in materials (e.g., DryFit) and designs have abounded over the last 20 years. Which of these will stand the test of time can only be vaguely compared to previous vintage trends – simply because, for example, climbing fashion has only existed since the 80s. Exciting!
Believe the Hype!
Every era brings forth its own phenomena: musicians, movies, political currents, color combinations, technology, and so on. Mix all of that with a formative phase in life, and you have a healthy dose of nostalgia with plenty of 'oh, remember that?'. To already recognize which (pop) cultural topics will be fondly remembered later requires keen observation. All the better when you have experts:
"Everything that has to do with Elon Musk and Tesla" is categorized as 'Future Classics' by Germany's first Vintage YouTuber Philips.Finds. Style-defining brands like Acapulco Gold and 10Deep are expected to be highly valued by VielGoodz – i.e., brands whose designs are iconic for a specific era. And cap specialist David from Vintage Cap Kid is keeping an eye on Gaming Shirts, whose target audience has long outgrown the subculture: "I also believe that these items don't necessarily have to be 20 years old or older to acquire this vintage value" – which wouldn't be surprising given ever-faster changing trends.
NFT: Nice Fashionable Token?
Speaking of "Gaming Shirts": not only shirts with video game (motifs) could become even more popular in the future, but also shirts within video games. Because clothing is playing an increasingly important role in the gaming world. "For kids, the skin they wear in Fortnite is just as important as their clothes in real life. Both reflect who they are," Evelyn Mora of Helsinki Fashion Week predicted last year.
The same game in the Metaverse: Personally created avatars can visit fashion shows and buy digital outfits – and even if these don't naturally fade like real existing clothing, etc., they could eventually be considered (digital) vintage due to exclusivity and sufficient time.
Only one question remains: What do you think will have vintage value in ten years? Let us know in the comments!
Here are also the exciting answers from our Vintage Community:
