So what comes after Y2K? Fashion trends for 2025

We may party like it’s 1999, but we’re dressing like it’s 2000–a future Prince could only dream of. Y2K fashion, making a comeback since late 2019, remains appealing in the 2020s thanks to nostalgia, TikTok, and its accessible style staples like mini skirts, layered tees, and denim-on-denim.

The “nostalgia wave,” fueled by global challenges, has revived early 2000s fashion alongside entertainment reboots. Psychologists link nostalgia to improved resilience, while Gen Z, often experiencing anemoia (nostalgia for a time they didn’t live in), has embraced Y2K fashion. TikTok and thrift culture further amplify the trend’s appeal, creating a modern resurgence rooted in romanticized past styles.

What Comes After Y2K?

➡ The rise of Newstalgia–a blend of past inspiration and new expression–indicates Y2K fashion will coexist with evolving styles:
➡ Quiet Luxury/Old Money: Subtle, high-quality styles with muted colors and timeless silhouettes. Brands: The Row, Bevza.
➡ Retrofuturism: Sleek, bold pieces using vinyl and patent leather, echoing the “Space Age” and avant-garde designs of Thierry Mugler. Brands: HUBANE, Rabanne.
➡ Fast and Fringed: Fringe styles in leather and suede reemerge, blending Western and Bohemian influences seen on NYFW 2024 runways. Brands: Fringe + Co, Ralph Lauren.

00:00 Introduction
00:34 Y2K Fashion's Comeback
01:14 The Nostalgia Wave
02:28 Is Y2K Still Relevant?
03:52 Newstalgia
04:29 Old Money Aesthetic
05:17 Retrofuturism
06:12 Revival of Fringed Clothing