After years of athleisure dominating closets, denim jeans are back in the spotlight.

• As brands reinvest in fit, quality, and cultural relevance, the US denim market is set to reach $21.5 billion by 2028, according to Euromonitor International.
• “Denim is always going to be around because it can morph,” said Amy Leverton, owner and founder of denim-focused consultancy Denim Dudes. “It has that ability to be whatever it needs to be for whoever. It can be high-end runway, slick and glossy, and it can be punk and streetwear… there’s no other garment like that.”

Refocusing on design

While value and volume have dominated denim production recently, the pendulum may swing back to design-focused offerings, said Leverton.

“We might be on the very front end of seeing the shift back… creativity is coming back,” she said.

Perhaps that’s why mass retailers like Target are rethinking their denim assortment.

• Target’s Universal Thread, generating over $1 billion annually, relaunched with new fits and “elevated” fabrics last month, according to Forbes.
• The retailer is also changing Universal Thread’s merchandising and display, grouping jeans by rise and material.
• Target’s efforts to reinvigorate its denim offerings are paying off. Target reports women’s denim sales rose 28% YoY in Q2, driven by “new styles, silhouettes, and washes.”

Unlike past decades that centered on one dominant silhouette (like skinny, flare, or boyfriend), today’s denim landscape offers choice, with consumers mixing styles to suit their mood or moment.

• That fluidity aligns with Gen Z’s hyper-individualism. For them, jeans aren’t just clothing; They’re creative identity.
• “[Jean fashion will] never going to come back in the same way,” said Leverton. “But I like the idea of Gen Z and Alpha wearing the same jeans as their mom who’s wearing hers from Target… there’s actually synergy, which is cute.”

Discovery in the scroll era

Social platforms are shaping denim’s revival as much as designers. About 30% of consumers look to Instagram for denim inspiration, while 22% turn to TikTok and 20% to YouTube, according to Cotton Incorporated’s 2024 Lifestyle Monitor Survey.

This ecosystem has made cultural moments a key growth lever.

• Calvin Klein’s collaboration with BTS member Jung Kook reinforced its global youth appeal, while American Eagle’s “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans” campaign was “worth every single dollar that we invested,” CMO Craig Brommers told Marketing Brew.
• Even Amazon is teaming with creator Kate Bartlett for a new Amazon Essentials denim line.

“The big celebrity influencers are the quickest way of going, ‘This is what we stand for,’” said Leverton.

But quick hits don’t always sustain brand equity.

“Although the Sydney Sweeney thing worked, it [might not] work in the long term, because it did alienate a lot of people,” she said.

Legacy brands, new tactics

Heritage players are expanding in both directions to stay relevant.

• Levi Strauss & Co. is stretching across the price spectrum: Its new Blue Tab line, with pieces priced above $350, caters to the premium shopper, while the brand continues to offer $20 jeans in mass channels, as reported by The Wall Street Journal.
• That flexibility has helped Levi’s maintain its leadership position, favored by 32% of US consumers, followed by Wrangler (11%), Lee (6%), and American Eagle (6%), according to Cotton Incorporated’s 2024 Lifestyle Monitor.

This dual-track approach helps legacy brands compete with smaller, design-driven upstarts.

“During the pandemic, there was this explosion of bedroom makers and people who followed their dreams,” said Leverton. “Now creativity and one-of-one is selling… people are like, 'Could I buy a Louis Vuitton bag, or should I buy from this random maker in Ohio who’s doing one of one?'”

The next chapter of denim will likely focus less on mass production and more on authenticity and small-scale innovation.

“I urge brands to lean into their DNA, their community, culture, and try not to be everything to everyone,” said Leverton. “My spidey sense says that’s what culture is going to respond to in this moment.”

This was originally featured in the Retail Daily newsletter. For more retail insights, statistics, and trends, subscribe here.