The '80s power suit is so back. Should we be worried?
Right now, it feels like all the eras are trending at once. ‘70s hippie spirit through the lens of the nineties and noughties is having a moment as “boho chic”; late ’00s and early 2010s messy, indie music-fuelled hedonism is trending under the moniker “indie sleaze”, and mid-century Old Hollywood style, though never really out, is particularly popular at the moment. As if that wasn’t enough, the '80s are enjoying a revival too.
While a variety of '80s trends have been popping up on the runways, from gaudy costume jewellery at Saint Laurent to bubble skirts at Dior, the standout trend of this season is the '80s power suit. Not an unpadded shoulder in sight, the suits coming down the runway this month are notable for their statement-making width. While they’ve been everywhere, significant examples include Acne Studios, Ferragamo, Versace and especially the aforementioned Saint Laurent.
The 80s suit is one of the decade's definitive outfits, as it became the de facto uniform for career women entering the workplace for the first time. Inspired partly by the imposing, wide-shouldered silhouettes of 1940s Hollywood starlet Joan Crawford, designers such as Claude Montana, Thierry Mugler, Giorgio Armani and Yves Saint Laurent sent forth suits for women that screamed power. This was reflected and further disseminated by Dynasty, the American TV show which ran from 1981 to 1989 and was a fashion phenomenon. And, let's not forget the eternal icon Grace Jones, the singer whose androgynous beauty is synonymous with the decade.
It’s no coincidence that the '80s were a time of profit-chasing and conspicuous consumption. The dominant ideology was neoliberalism: from Ronald Reagan in the US to Margaret Thatcher in the UK, it was a time where capitalism and individualism thrived unfettered, government spending was cut and public industries were privatised. Economic hardships were seen as an individual weakness (laziness or stupidity) rather than a systemic societal failing. A successful career and upward mobility became the ultimate priority: it was no longer about working to live, but living to work. The dominant yuppie culture of the time has been satirised in media, famously in American Psycho.
While you could argue that the power suit revival is just a reference, just a pastiche, the reality is that this sort of ideology is at an all-time high. Not only is capitalism less controlled than ever (see: billionaires who have nothing better to do than to spend their money on self-serving space projects), the mask of neoliberalism – which claims that the market, not the government, can solve all of society’s issues – has in some places been pulled away to reveal full-on fascism.
Even on a pop culture level, neoliberalism is thriving. Just think of how prevalent hustle culture is now: viral videos of people waking up at 4am and dunking their face in ice water to maximise productivity. Speaking of productivity, adverts for AI tools to maximise your workflow are everywhere, because people are expected to do more in less time. Faster, faster, faster! The term “side hustle” is inescapable if you have an internet connection, although this is also to do with the rising cost of living as much as it has to do with personal ambition.
There’s also another reason for this fetishisation of office wear. The trend for power suits is arguably an offshoot of the office siren trend, which comprises of skirt suits and rectangle Bayonetta-style glasses. Think: supermodel Gisele Bündchen’s character in Devil Wears Prada. Waistcoats and office pants have recently become clothes you can wear anywhere, and even look sexy in.
While going into an office job in the city is a mundane part of life for those that have to do it every day, for those that don’t have the luxury of a white collar job, it’s a status symbol. Just look at the popularity of the phrase “big girl job” on TikTok, which is used to describe a corporate, office-based job with opportunities for growth and upward mobility, as opposed to a hospitality or retail job. (Not that anything is wrong with those, and work does not define us.)
The UK job market is in dire straits, with analysis by a leading recruitment data provider reporting that hiring by employers has dropped 35% in just the last year. Therefore, as getting a “big girl job” is increasingly out of reach for many graduates, it has become something rather romantic. With this increased competition for jobs, it is not a stretch to suggest that selling out would be more popular than ever, with many people ready to compromise their morals to secure the bag. We see this with celebrities, from Stormzy’s McDonalds meal to comedians like Bill Burr taking money from the Saudi Arabian government to perform at a comedy festival in Riyadh. (Although, selling out has always been a thing and balancing creativity and business is the eternal question for artists.)
There’s also something to be said about the similarities between this style – where blazers and office wear are now acceptable to wear out – and the business casual style of the early 2010s. Pencil skirts and peplum tops became de rigueur party wear, topped off with a statement necklace. One interpretation of this style is that, due to the effects of the 2008 financial crisis and the recession that followed, it made more financial sense for people to buy clothes that would be suitable for a job interview as well as for the dance floor. However, some also note that clubs in the 2000s banned a lot of urban streetwear associated with Black people, such as trainers, hoodies and jeans, prompting people to take up business casual for nights out.
With economic downturns since the pandemic and Brexit, and the difficulties for young people to find employment, the social conditions feel similar. So similar, in fact, that the term ‘recession indicator’ has become a buzzword, used to describe things like the return of hedonistic pop.
In 2025, the '80s power suit can indeed be a recession indicator. It can also be wishful thinking: dressing for the job you want. It can be a co-sign of neoliberalism: worshipping success and hustle culture. And, maybe, it can be a parody of all these things. Whatever your take on it, the style can’t be removed from associations of power, wealth and capitalism.
