This story is part of Glossy’s week-long look at the state of luxury, exploring what consumers and brands are deeming worthy of investment in 2024. To see all the stories in the series, click here.
A few short years ago, socks provided protection and comfort to our feet. Today, socks tell the world where you fit into society.
“I’ve seen it called many things, but I think the best term is ‘sock gate’,” said Liza Amlani, founder of consultancy firm Retail Strategy Group and former hosiery buyer. “It’s a culture shift where the socks you choose today are almost a distinction — not only of generations, but also between who is embracing this fashion moment and who is not.”
According to Amlani, consumers traditionally selected socks based on functionality, with predictable “sock pairings” for each shoe type. But today, younger consumers are bucking traditional pairings and rejecting naked ankles no matter the shoe, with white tube socks being a universally popular choice. This includes the online shaming of ankle and no-show socks, or “millennial socks,” by content creators of all ages. At the same time, as global economic conditions continue to wobble, luxury socks are gaining popularity among more aspirational shoppers who want to dip their toes into logomania but find leather goods out of reach.
The root cause of the sock’s big glow-up appears to be a perfect storm of cultural and economic shifts, as well as changing pant and shoe trends, resulting in a gold rush of sorts for brands and retailers that act swiftly.
According to Google search data provided to Glossy, “are ankle socks out of style” and “are no show socks out of style” are the top trending “are…out of style” searches in the past year.
Searches for “gen z socks” spiked, with a 1,000% increase in search volume in May, reaching an all-time high, while “millennial socks” became a breakout Google search term in 2024, meaning it’s both new and had a tremendous increase in searches. Meanwhile, Google searches for “ankle socks” and “half crew socks” both reached an all-time high this summer, while searches for “scrunch socks” nearly doubled in August.
On TikTok, content involving millennials and ankle socks has been seen in more than 33.4 million posts, much of which poke fun at millennials who try to appear younger by adopting higher socks.
It’s a shift Amlani sees both in her work as a retail consultant and on the feet of her Gen-Z students as an adjunct professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City. “What’s interesting [as a professor] is seeing [Gen Z] embracing this moment and just being so aware of their personal branding around socks,” Amlani told Glossy.
For Gen Z, socks matter — and they’re driving sales. According to market data from Edited, a retail intelligence platform and market insights company, the number of new crew sock styles increased 26% YoY at mass market retailers. While retailers added taller socks into assortments, they also pulled back from shorter lengths. The amount of new ankle styles dropped 13%, while no-show options dropped 4% year-over-year.
“Given Gen Z’s ability to set the trends that other demographics follow, whether reviving items from previous eras or participating in a new TikTok aesthetic, retailers have responded by adapting their assortments,” said Kayla Marci, senior retail analyst at Edited.
This sea change also offers retailers and brands an opportunity to hone their community.
“What’s interesting is to actually look at how brands are leveraging this trend moment to potentially acquire and interact with certain consumers,” said Philip Atkins, a former Nordstrom buyer and DVF exec turned co-founder of Phidel Digital, an integrated marketing agency focused on building community-driven brands with positive cultural impact. “I’ve been noticing how Miu Miu, for example, uses socks to signal its Gen-Z positioning.”
The fashion house’s ads, for example, feature stars like Emma Chamberlain and Gigi Hadid in the tall socks it sells for more than $400 a pair at retailers like FWRD and Bergdorf Goodman. “There’s a sock in sight in every shot,” Atkins said about Miu Miu’s recent campaigns. “The price point is through the roof, and yet [Miu Miu] has managed to totally claim this Gen-Z relevancy as one of hottest and most desirable brands.”
But sock positioning also works the other way. “During the Gap rebrand, which was flawlessly executed, there is some ankle getting shown,” Atkins said. “And I keep wondering if that rebrand is really not so much targeted at Gen Zs, but rather on re-engaging the OG Gap customer who loved the Gap when they were in high school or their 20s. … [The] use of socks, from a styling perspective, allows brands to position themselves where they want to sit in culture.”
Today, covering your ankles is table stakes for Gen Z and trendy millennials, but this trend has been quietly brewing among trendsetters for a while. For example, in September of 2023, model Emily Ratajkowski made headlines with comments she made on her podcast, “High Low with EmRata.”
“My recent ick is men’s ankles, exposed ankles. I hate that,” Ratajkowski said on her podcast. “A dainty ankle exposed on the hottest man will ruin my day. … There was a guy I was seeing, and he came over in short pants and, like, a shoe that exposed his ankle, and I have not seen him since.”
While nearly a year since that comment, the disdain persists. Earlier this month, during an interview with People Magazine, 17-year-old actress Ariana Greenblatt, former Disney star and co-star of “Barbie” and “Borderlands,” participated in a game of “slay or nay.” When asked about ankle socks she said, “Nay! Cover your ankles, please!” and advised viewers to balance their slides and loafers with ruffle socks.
The sock trend change also follows the rejection of skinny jeans. “The no-show sock is directly related to a skinny, slim-leg pant,” Atkins said. “The first signal I saw was when cargo started popping off on TikTok among Gen Zs. The cargo pant had a big moment, and that bled over into baggy jeans and jorts. These wider silhouettes, frankly, look quite silly with no sock showing underneath.”
Regardless of the trend’s origins, when surveying tastemakers, there isn’t a bare ankle in sight, even on formal occasions. For example, when Vice President Kamala Harris’s stepdaughter Ella Emhoff spoke at the Democratic National Convention last month wearing a custom off-the-shoulder gown designed by up-and-coming designer Joe Ando, she paired it with slouchy white socks and black Mary-Jane flats.
Edited’s Marci also called out a rise in luxury sock popularity, which she attributes to price increases across the luxury market, making socks the new entry-level accessory instead of an afterthought. “[Price increases] make products like socks appealing to millennial and Gen-Z shoppers, allowing them to participate in a brand without purchasing high-ticket items like handbags,” she said.
Amlani called designer socks fashion’s equivalent of designer lipstick, which offers a peek-a-boo touch of luxury during public reapplications, or perfume, which is only noticeable to a trained nose. “Fragrance is one thing, and makeup is one thing, but when you can see the branding on a sock or the branding on your sunglasses, that’s giving customers [next-level] access with products [they can afford],” she said.
But, overall, the trend doesn’t exclude anyone, in keeping with Gen Z’s inclusivity value, said Edited’s Marci. “As consumers look to explore their personal style, [socks in] longer lengths and statement colors or prints offer a low-cost way to refresh or personalize an outfit.”
