What’s Next for Denim? AI-Aided Design, Upcycling and Gorpcore
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Denim design consultant Miles Johnson had a few bold predictions to share during a trends presentation at Soorty’s SpaceD event in New York City last week.
The event highlighted the importance of sustainable choices in denim and showed off a capsule collection created by the former Levi’s and Patagonia designer and the Pakistani denim manufacturer.
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During Johnson’s presentation, he hammered home the importance of circularity, collaboration and regenerative growing methods, and touched on a number of trends he foresees impacting the denim industry in 2024 and 2025.
Seven of those trends are outlined below:
Embroidered rivets
Reusing and recycling fabric has seen an uptick in recent years, but some components typical of jeans cannot be recycled. That reality creates some fabric waste, even when most of the garment can be recycled.
Rivets, zippers and metal buttons cannot be recycled. Johnson said he thinks embroidered rivets will come into style as a result.
“Now, we’re shifting over to the embroidered rivet; it’s stronger than a real rivet, but it does mean that it’s just thread, so it can actually be dropped into the recycling,” Johnson said.
Bye bye, skinny
Johnson predicted that skinny jeans won’t dominate denim lovers’ wardrobes anymore; instead, he said, they will diversify their closets to include multiple silhouettes and fits.
“I’m really glad to see that we’re capable of doing more than a skinny. We’ve been doing really great skinny jeans for 10 years, and it’s fantastic; it will not go away. But I think what’s changed is the buying attitude,” Johnson said. “If we’re going to go out and buy ourselves a new pair of jeans, we’re probably not going to buy the same fit that we’ve already got. We’re going to try a new fit. Wardrobes will [start to have variety], rather than five pairs of that same skinny fit in different washes.”
That aligns with Circana data that shows sales for looser-fitting jeans—like bootcut, flare and wide leg—increased in 2023. Meanwhile, skinny sales fell the most of any silhouette in 2022.
Denim as an accessory backdrop
Denim could soon be on trend as a canvas to show off other clothing items or loud, maximalist accessories, Johnson noted, citing an image of Pharrell Williams carrying Louis Vuitton’s Millionaire Speedy bag, which, true to its name, cost $1 million.
“I think it’s that contrast between a handbag that’s trimmed with 24 karat solid gold metal parts with a very simple, workwear denim. It’s almost like there’s a harmony between those styles together and the contrast between them, and that’s what’s making people gravitate to that denim,” he said. “I think the most fashionable way is to mix your high-end with your high street.”
Byproducts
Even as manufacturers work to decrease the amount of waste that comes as a byproduct of creating garments, some waste pervades. Johnson said he expects those byproducts to be turned into goods that can be sold.
“Maybe if we’re working on a five-pocket fit… and we find out that we’ve got a common amount of scrap pieces… it’s fairly simple to put together a garment made from waste pieces, scrap pieces.”
He said he envisions the trash-turned-treasure pieces would likely be denim accessories, like baseball caps. “Sold side by side would be very nice because they can really help tell a story, and people love a story,” he said.
Outdoor denim
Denim can go take a hike this year—literally.
Aligned with the gorpcore trend, Johnson predicts that denim will find its place among outdoor enthusiasts in the next year or two.
“[It] goes to show that denim isn’t just something that you wear in the city. You can wear denim for lots of different things. And it’s always been a… wearable, durable fabric, so why not have it in an outdoor range?” Johnson said.
He told Rivet he expects to see movable styles in the outdoor denim arena like a jogger that resembles a five-pocket jean. “I think the five pocket is that old friend that people will gravitate to because they understand what it is,” he said.
Denim imitation
Denim lookalikes could also begin showing up in outerwear.
During his presentation, the Patagonia ex-pat showed images of The North Face products that are made out of GoreTex but resemble the look of denim.
“That’s the easiest thing you can wear throughout the week, and this goes against the way that the outdoor world has been looking with all its shiny and bright colors—that’s great, but you can’t wear it in the city every day of the week,” Johnson explained.
He expects denim imitation could begin to touch other products and industries, as well.
Artificial intelligence influencing new designs
AI has already begun providing inspiration to designers’ creative processes.
Last year Soorty presented HumAIn, a 50-piece collection of artificial intelligence-generated garments made with AI Stable Diffusion, an open source AI platform.
Johnson said he believes designers and brands will only continue to use generative AI to their advantage and noted that its potential to sharpen 3D capabilities could help manufacturers and brands reduce waste created by physical prototypes.
“It’s just mind blowing what the possibilities are. Some of these things that a few years ago you would have said were impossible, are suddenly now possible. So I’m not frightened by [AI]. I’m really running toward it as much as I can understand it,” Johnson told Rivet.
