When heels spike, the economy tanks
ON THE CUTTING EDGE: You’ve heard the theory that the longer women’s skirts are the worse the economy is (“a glimpse of leg gives a sense of independence and confidence; a sweeping skirt is a sign of modesty and austerity.”). Well, apparently it’s the other way around for shoes, The Christian Science Monitor reports:
In the 1920s, low-heeled flapper shoes gave way to high-heel pumps and platforms during the Great Depression.
In the 1970s oil crisis, platforms came back en vogue as the low-heeled sandals of the late 1960s were cast aside.
In the 1990s, the low, thick heels of the “grunge” period were replaced by “Sex and the City”-inspired stilettos just as the dot-com bubble burst.
“Usually, in an economic downturn, heels go up and stay up – as consumers turn to a more flamboyant fashions as a means of fantasy and escape,” says Trevor Davis, a consumer product expert with International Business Machines' Global Business Services unit, in a press release.
IBM conducted a study of social media posts and is predicting that women’s heel heights, which are currently in nosebleed territory, are poised to come back down to Earth.
Perhaps the shift signals a change in the economic outlook, or maybe it’s a sign of resignation.
“This time, something different is happening – perhaps a mood of long-term austerity is evolving among consumers sparking a desire to reduce ostentation in everyday settings,” Davis says.
Or, just maybe, after teetering around on 5-inch heels women just want to give their tootsies a break and wear ballet flats for a while. Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar, ya know?
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