Switzerland wears black

From light blue to cherry red and pastel yellow: if you believe the experts at fashion magazine Vogue, we should see lots of brightly dressed people on the street, bus or in the office. Sales at the online department store Galaxus in Switzerland suggest otherwise. Four out of ten sweaters, skirts and underwear sold today are black.

In 2019, folks in Switzerland opted for more colour – in addition to a third of black clothes, 27 per cent blue, 12 per cent grey, 10 per cent white, and 5 per cent red and green clothes ended up in the shopping cart. Since then, the proportion of non-black clothes has dwindled. Blue has lost much of its popularity, plus grey, green and red aren’t being bought as regularly by Galaxus customers either. On the other hand, in 2023, black garments increased their share to 38 per cent.

In spring 2024, the proportion of black clothes in all sales was as high as 43%. «However, colourful fabrics are likely to increase a bit in the warmer months,» says Jessica Valloncini, who, among other things, is responsible for the clothing range at Galaxus. «In summer, we tend to wear a yellow skirt or orange shorts.»

Bro, you’re in black again?

Men in particular like the darker side – of the 100 items of clothing they’ve bought at Galaxus so far this year, 45 were black. For women it was 40. Women are ordering more clothes in red, bright pink, blush or green.

Young people are leading this trend. Among under-30s, six out of ten items of clothing purchased are black. To change it up, they also wear white trousers, shirts or hoodies. Blue clothes are totally out among boys – after black, white, red and pink, blue is in sixth place on the popularity scale.

Customers’ colour preferences have a direct influence on what Jessica and her colleagues buy from manufacturers and distributors. For example, when in doubt, they order large quantities in black for the deal of the day now.

You say Peach Fuzz, I say Beige

Incidentally, Galaxus sales also show a mini-trend: in recent years, the colour beige has increased its share of sales to a good four per cent. The colour consultancy Pantone has also named Peach Fuzz «Color of the Year 2024». Peach Fuzz is a beige with an orange tinge.

Jessica can’t say for certain whether we’ll only be wearing black in 2030: «Trends come and go. Who knows, maybe we’ll experience another 90s comeback full of neon or the brown tones from the 70s return.»

Do you like wearing colourful clothes? Or is your wardrobe all-black? What do you think of the trend described above? The comments section is all yours.