From Alix Earle to Kombucha Girl, influencers suggest that their enviable lives are achievable through the perfect pair of gold hoops, an iron clad VPN and a Carl’s Jr. Hangover Burger. Therefore, the emergence of “recession-core,” which pushes frugality and minimizes consumption, is somewhat unusual when viewed through the lens of social media.
Recession-core joins Coastal Grandmother, Appalachian Gothic, Grocery Girl Fall and Lobotomy Chic as an (apparently) defined aesthetic. Regardless of what goes on in these bizarre hellscapes where buying groceries is somehow a defining quality, the strange specificity of these microtrends drives constant purchases to keep up with the latest adjective-noun-core.
What makes recession-core different is that it encapsulates many of the social issues in the United States and world today, while also resolving the capitalism-driven culture of overconsumption and instant gratification.
The United States has a consumption problem. If everyone in the world were to live life and consume at the rate of Americans, at least five Earths would be required to keep up with the demand for resources. The fashion industry itself is responsible for 10% of global carbon emissions, with 85% of textiles ending up in landfills annually.
Unlike all of these internet aesthetics which serve the bottom line of fast fashion companies, recession-core revolves around plain, versatile silhouettes that evade the grip of the belligerent trend cycle. Rather than demanding consumers buy the next trendy item, recession-core breaks through the online sphere and acknowledges the social and economic times of the real world.
In other words, the circumstances that led to the existence of recession-core and other microtrends, are the same circumstances that recession-core aims to reject. It’s like recession-core is the moody teenage child to hyper-capitalist parents, threatening to end the bloodline. But, recession-core is not just a phase — it has more holding power than the typical fast fashion moment because it not only relies on online interest, but policy and economic trends, which are far less variable.
Recession-core fashion, while timeless, is not boring. These days, party-
goers are trading in their vibrant head-to-toe outfits reminiscent of Euphoria for plain outfits with pops of color from makeup, hair chalk or a neon tank top. The lean toward bold accessories is not just a stop on the path to the next cool style; it is a well-documented phenomenon that economists refer to as the “Lipstick index.,” During times of economic struggle, consumers purchase small luxury items like lipstick, while larger luxury item sales decrease.
Gone are the days of “logomania” where visibly repping Louis Vuitton and Supreme was en vogue. Today, those who can afford it are turning towards so-called “quiet luxury,” a style defined by undetectably expensive clothes. In a nation where 60% of households do not earn enough to cover basic living expenses, dressing like a professional athlete blowing their rookie contract cash is in poor taste.
With that said, if commodifying an impending economic disaster seems strange, it is because it is. There is nothing glorious about the country’s return to destitution, no matter what Gen Z TikTok starlets may do to try to convince us of such.
Of course, romanticizing dark periods of time is not foreign to the human species. Famously, Victorians romanticized tuberculosis, a disease which killed an estimated 4 million people during the period, yet shaped beauty standards for decades. In the 90s, the “heroin chic” style of undereye bags and extreme thinness associated with drug abuse consumed high (literally) fashion. It appears as though recession-core is a similar form of escapism.
In the same way that gas prices dropped during the COVID-19 pandemic, the transition to more sustainable purchasing habits in an economic crisis is a positive side effect of a tremendous crisis. Low gas prices are not representative of 2020, and a step away from trends is not going to be representative of 2025. However, it is clear that recession-core embodies much of the social and economic deterioration of the United States. It is the product of an increasingly online world and a perilous job market. Though recession-core may get lumped in with microtrends, it is the consequence of poor policy and a world that can only interpret reality through short form videos.