A brand guide to TikTok's Mob Wife Trend
A micro-trend with a macro-impact on brand and product strategy
The explosive rise of trends like girl math and quiet luxury show that TikTok has a unique ability to speak to audiences through micro-trends. Among the seemingly weekly viral trends, the Mob Wife Aesthetic trend has amassed a very quick following amongst Gen-Z, millennials, and even celebrities, all of whom are instrumental in setting the tone for culture. Inspired by the Sopranos, the Mob Wife trend is bringing back iconic 90s looks like gold jewelry, French manicures, and elaborate fur coats. The beauty of the trend is that, despite its implications, it’s relatively accessible. You can incorporate elements of this trend into any style and still feel like a part of the movement. While this may seem like just another TikTok trend, it represents a stark departure from previous trends and seems even more authentically 1990s. Coupled with Gen-Z’s unique purchasing patterns and unique disposition on luxury brands, this trend is an immense opportunity for brands to convey authenticity through storytelling, incorporate vintage and archival elements in their product strategy, and capitalize on the success of adjacent industries like watches through collaborations.
Storytelling through lookbooks
From grunge influence to baggy jeans, Gen-Z’s enduring infatuation with the 1990s is apparent. What makes the 90s so captivating is that it feels equally nostalgic yet topical. It’s very easy to picture what life in the 90s must have been like through the design language of the clothing. This translates exceptionally well to brands since the most successful brands create a mini-universe through their styling. By looking at a lookbook, you should have an immediate idea of the brand’s values. We’ve already seen brands like Bode and Aime Leon Gore use 90s backdrops for their photoshoots, featuring wooden panelling and 90s colors schemes. Many smaller brands including Drole de Monsieur followed suit and successfully adopted a similar strategy. References to the 90s in lookbooks started with high level ideas but as time progressed, the ideas became more nuanced and referential (including references to architecture, art, and technology rather than just 90s colorblocking), signaling a more authentic picture of the era. Since more brand lookbooks are starting to look similar, what will separate the best ones is this idea of authenticity and high production quality. Many brands who have been around a while have the luxury of using archival photos of old collections. There is a strong correlation between the use of archival imaging and strong brand equity. For newer entrants with limited product SKUs and archives, these brands are challenged with incorporating vintage elements while still creating something new with a unique point of view. Expect to see modern tailoring and silhouettes in the backdrop of what feels like a Sopranos set.
Watches are aspirational again
This week at LVMH Watch Week, BVLGARI released a retro version of its classic BVLGARI watch famously worn by George Michael and could easily be pictured on the wrist of any 1990s icon. The watch features an understated dial with a gold bezel reading BVLGARI and is an easy way to incorporate a touch of gold in any outfit. As watch brands are trending to more vintage design cues including smaller case sizes, BVLGARI released the watches in a historically accurate 26mm and 38mm. This is part of a larger shift of blurring the lines between luxury fashion and luxury watches. Once a hobbyist market, watches have become more coveted by wider audiences due to creators like Mike Nouveau using TikTok to show that watches have incredible stories behind them. Even iconic watch publication, Hodinkee, is incorporating more fashion content into its feed.
A key part of the Sopranos aesthetic is James Gandolfini’s gold Rolex Day-Date (another reference was also famously worn by Patrick Bateman in American Psycho). Consumer tastes will slowly shift to more extravagant, opulent designs as a result. Since the barrier to entry for gold watches is prohibitively high for most (both price and accessibility), the demand for older gold references will rise. For the price conscious consumer, this represents a big opportunity for entry level brands like Timex and Citizen to create similar pieces that have the heritage without the price point. A good strategy for these brands is to collaborate with relevant brands. We’ve seen Timex collaborate with Todd Snyder to create heirloom-level watches at the $200-$300 price point. As a brand, collaborating with a watch brand is a great way to diversify your product strategy and double down on storytelling. Even though the demand for luxury watches is increasing, Gen-Z is generally skeptic of the notion that price directly translates to quality. What’s attracting this new generation to watches is not the aspirational price, but the symbolism of the product.
Archives and Vintage Curation
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