Back to School for Some

I've been talking with lot of 16 year olds recently who are getting ready to go back to school. Something that I can't help but notice is that kids today are dressing a whole lot more sophisticated then when I was going to high school.

Back then, there were still the popular kids that dressed really well, but nowadays every teen seems to have a great fashion sense. This got me thinking...what's changed?

Some things that popped into my mind are:

1. Marketers are more aggressively targeting the teen market compared 7 years ago.

2. This creates a more competitive market for teens that pushes clothing prices down.

3. Parents with lower incomes can still buy stylish clothes for very little money.

At Old Navy, you can find button-down shirts for as little as $9.99 and tee's for $1.99.

When I was in high school, there was the GAP but as I recall their clothing weren't very "fun"...preppie yes, but not fun. Over the years, I've noticed that their style has become more hip. The selection of stores have also exploded. Old Navy, American Eagle and Tristan & America are all new stores that didn't exist or weren't in Canada 7 years ago.

I was recently cleaning out my closet and found a whole bunch of my old clothes. I was shocked I actually wore some of that stuff. Some old jackets were so large that I still don't fit them properly. Even though the "baggy" look was in fashion back then, I cringe at how baggy my clothes actually were.

I never did this, but does anyone else remember when people were wearing their clothes backwards?! Jeans worn backwards, shirts worn backwards, hats worn backwards...Whoa, I feel really old now!