Do Millennials appreciate Classic Vintage Biker Jackets?

[gzmavian]

I think new demographics and societal attitudes have changed radically. Harley Davidson sales are trending down. Consequently it appears classic vintage biker jacket demand has softened and the demand has also declined. The interest in 'anything old' has declined in general, at least it appears that way..... hope I'm wrong this time.
Opinions anyone?

 

[ton312]

Actually I hope you are right. Let’s keep this hobby limited to Gen X and older. The kiddie table can have all the pleather and eco friendly sourced pseudo maxi zoom dewbie material they like. I have enough competition around here and eBay as is. I’m looking at you @JMax

 

[gzmavian]

Actually I hope you are right. Let’s keep this hobby limited to Gen X and older. The kiddie table can have all the pleather and eco friendly sourced pseudo maxi zoom dewbie material they like. I have enough competition around here and eBay as is. I’m looking at you @JMax

Well Stated Max!

 

[So33]

I think my younger daughters and thier social group are working at the basics, food, housing, healthcare, it seems to be much less affordable than when I was their age. They have to travel a little lighter. They tend to be a more throwaway society, maybe more because of not having the disposable income.
I myself, a person at the end of the baby boom, had to wait until my late 40's to have the disposable income to buy the Harley, vintage jackets, or whatever else that pleases me. Health insurance has alway been there for me, even when I worked part time at a fast food restaurant in the 70's I had a healthcare plan 100% paid for. As it goes for vintage motorcycle jackets, they seem to be as high priced as ever and a new Harley has passed affordability for the average Joey.
The few younger guys I meet at the motorycle swap meets are most always trying to put together a Harley rat bike bobber because that's what they can afford.

 

[navetsea]

Everytime i post a picture in waywt thread in local denim community of me wearing leather jacket i always get dislike.... so maybe youre right. Not sure what the reason is, could be ethical reason. Maybe it is seen as cruelty against animal to wear an item made from at least 4 cows... at least these 4 cows are immortalized and loved for many years, rather than just being a burger that you gobble up today and goes down the toilet the next day.... but i might be wrong... maybe leather jacket are just not trendy.

 

[ton312]

Everytime i post a picture in waywt thread in local denim community of me wearing leather jacket i always get dislike.... so maybe youre right. Not sure what the reason is, could be ethical reason. Maybe it is seen as cruelty against animal to wear an item made from at least 4 cows... at least these 4 cows are immortalized and loved for many years, rather than just being a burger that you gobble up today and goes down the toilet the next day.... but i might be wrong... maybe leather jacket are just not trendy.

That’s totally it man. If you use the animal, use all of it! That’s the responsible thing to do! Not pollute the environment with plastic jackets that produce toxic by products and will survive in some form or another and leave a massive polluted footprint.

 

[gzmavian]

the millennial group is certainly challenging. Their attitude toward social responsibility may be their moral compass and yes, they may eat soy and wear plethor. And perhaps their interest in vintage just isn't there. We'll stay tuned and watch things to evolve.

 

[navetsea]

They move fast, trying retro inspired style of many eras in just one season, im not sure what era is the hype right now.... judging by capt marvel it could be the 90's, i still have some baggy pants from mid 90... marithe francois girbaud baggy jeans and levis silver tab, hammer pants here I come.

 

[nick123]

I'm a millenial. I affiliate with non-violent Luddites.

 

[JMax]

Actually I hope you are right. Let’s keep this hobby limited to Gen X and older. The kiddie table can have all the pleather and eco friendly sourced pseudo maxi zoom dewbie material they like. I have enough competition around here and eBay as is. I’m looking at you @JMax

Lol. Perhaps I should add some IH and other denim jackets to my list of eBay searches? Keep it interesting for everyone.

 

[navetsea]

I think 5yrs back leather jacket was in fashion, then it went to ma-1, then oversize parka, then patchy hobo style kimono thing, maybe now a-2? But to be safe we should wait what capt america is wearing in the next avengers movie.

 

[dannyk]

Well to echo something it’s hard to care about anything when there are jobs but they don’t pay. When you graduate college but everyone has a degree. When you see entry level but need 5 years experience. When healthcare and housing costs are outrageous. But that aside I’m 33 I don’t consider myself a millennial but the actual statistics say I am. And I do my best to trade or find budget thrift store finds. And Buffalo specifically has a pretty cool thing going on. With restaurants and bars opening specializing in food and drinks from the 20s-60s and a pin-up photo company, a retro barber shop, a 50s clothing boutique, a cobbler who does amazing work, so it’s there and I say here we definitely appreciate/love it. But it’s not a cheap or easy hobby and unfortunately a lot of us can’t get into it.

 

[Monitor]

Um, have you guys seen literally every Zara/H&M/whatever line this year? All heritage inspired denim/leather, all biker or workwear. I don't think classic vintage biker style has ever been more popular, at least in this fashion form. I'm seeing chicks wearing D-pocket leather jackets. Not of particular quality, but...
More people than ever are aware of all this wonderful clothes and are talking about it. Just check out Styleforum, Superfuture, Reddit, etc... And again, Google just about any younger Hollywood actor. I just looked for Ben Affleck in Wikipedia. Naturally, the only pic of him there and he's wearing...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Affleck_filmography

So I'd say it's being appreciated alright.

 

[ton312]

Lol. Perhaps I should add some IH and other denim jackets to my list of eBay searches? Keep it interesting for everyone.

 

[navetsea]

Older gen wasted/ burned their money on ciggarette and heavy liquor, younger generation on smartphone bill, hipster coffee, donation to random youtubers through patreon.

 

[Kane]

I work in Santa Monica, California, a couple of days a week. This is where “The Beautiful People” are. Very young and not-so-young hip crowd, and very fashion conscious. I see a fair number of younger folks sporting black leather motorcycle jackets, mostly women. There is sometimes a cafe style jacket, but most are the police style with wide lapels and belts. Most of the jackets that I have noticed look pretty new, not vintage. When I happen to converse with these folks I compliment them on their jackets and ask if they ride a motorcycle, and none that I have asked actually ride. My impression is that these jackets are definitely in-fashion.

 

[nick123]

I work in Santa Monica, California, a couple of days a week. This is where “The Beautiful People” are. Very young and not-so-young hip crowd, and very fashion conscious. I see a fair number of younger folks sporting black leather motorcycle jackets, mostly women. There is sometimes a cafe style jacket, but most are the police style with wide lapels and belts. Most of the jackets that I have noticed look pretty new, not vintage. When I happen to converse with these folks I compliment them on their jackets and ask if they ride a motorcycle, and none that I have asked actually ride. My impression is that these jackets are definitely in-fashion.

Santa Monica is an outlier!

 

[dudewuttheheck]

Um, have you guys seen literally every Zara/H&M/whatever line this year? All heritage inspired denim/leather, all biker or workwear. I don't think classic vintage biker style has ever been more popular, at least in this fashion form. I'm seeing chicks wearing D-pocket leather jackets. Not of particular quality, but...
More people than ever are aware of all this wonderful clothes and are talking about it. Just check out Styleforum, Superfuture, Reddit, etc... And again, Google just about any younger Hollywood actor. I just looked for Ben Affleck in Wikipedia. Naturally, the only pic of him there and he's wearing...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Affleck_filmography

So I'd say it's being appreciated alright.

THANK YOU! This nails it.

As a Millennial, I can say that a lot of us are actually very interested in this. Just because the media portrays us as leather-hating soy-eaters, some of us adore vintage clothing and that social responsibility everyone thinks we are obsessed with often manifests with buying better items that are more ethically made. For me, where my items are made is very important. Sure, I can't buy ethically made electronics, but I can buy ethically made clothing at least.

Also, as Monitor states- look at the fast fashion that's happening. So much of it is vintage inspired! I went to Venice Beach a few weeks ago and I lost track of how many biker jackets I saw. Sure, most of them were fake, but the interest is there. It's about getting people into the well made vintage or vintage inspired tems.

 

[Kane]

Santa Monica is an outlier!

It’s a wacky place!

 

[Bfd70]

My dad is a baby boomer. Be couldn’t give a rats ass about leather jackets and vintage style.

Most people i work with are gen x’ers. They couldn’t give a rats ass about leather jackets and vintage style.

I don’t know any personally but i assume some millenials do care about leather jackets and vintage style. Dudewhattheheck takes the time to maintain a blog about it.

Generalizing about people based on their age is boring.