ABSTRACT
Fashion is a key indicator of social conditions on a global scale. As fashion has lost the power it once held in terms of being indicative of status, consumers no longer wish to stand out and portray individuality through their clothing. In fact, anxieties to fit in within a local and global context have produced an international homogeneity of dress. The purpose of this paper is to explore the occurrence of clothing casualisation and homogenisation within the 21st century. I analysed the cities of London, New York and Tokyo as case studies and have utilised street photographs capturing inhabitants of each city in order to compare them. The key theorists that have aided my observations include Hill (2005) and Lipovetsky (1994). Hill discusses the lack of taste in clothing within the 21st century and the environmental impacts on dress. Lipovetsky explores the loss of interest towards clothing and the subsequent homogeneity thereof. These theories have allowed me to examine and identify how and why the casualisation of clothing has occurred within the 21st century and how this has led to homogeneity in dress on a global scale.
