Thongs are officially done, according to the New York Times.
A recent article by the paper says that young women are swapping their G-strings for "grannny panties" and other comfier underwear styles. .
According to a new report on lingerie trends from research company NPD Group, sales of thongs dropped seven per cent this past year, while styles like briefs, boy shorts and high-waist undies have collectively grown 17 per cent.
"Within millennial and Generation Y consumer groups, it’s considered cool to be wearing full-bottom underwear," Bernadette Kissane, an apparel analyst at the market intelligence firm Euromonitor, told the Times. "Thongs have had their moment."
The piece points to several upstart lingerie and underwear brands that are capitalizing on the trend, including Ten Undies, Hello Beautiful and Me and You, whose best-selling style is a pair of white cotton underpants with the word "feminist" printed in pink bubble letters across the back.
And while the shift in underwear preference can be attributed to the rise of these cool brands, as well as women putting putting comfort and simplicity first, the most significant reason is shopping motives: women are dressing and shopping for themselves, rather than for men.
"Most lingerie is designed to appeal to a man," Me and You co-founder Julia Baylis told the Times. "For us, that’s not even a consideration. This is underwear you wear totally for you. Maybe no one will see it, or maybe you’ll put it up on Instagram to share with everyone you know."
"Most women just want something basic for every day that will make them look and feel good," Greer Simpkins, designer and founder of Hello Beautiful added.
And at the end of the day, it's not an underwear style that makes you sexy -- it's how you feel when wearing it.
"What's sexy for us is being natural and comfortable," said Mayan Toledano, the other half of Me and You. "There’s nothing wrong with wanting to be more traditionally sexy and wearing a thong; that doesn’t mean you’re not a feminist. This is a step toward embracing more variety in what’s offered."
We couldn't agree more.
So Sisqo, is a granny panties song in the works?
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