Shoulders have become the new cleavage, with sales of off-the-shoulder tops and dresses over taking revealing low-cut garments on the high street.
Fashion retailer Simply Be has seen sales soar, up 112%, compared to this time last year, of the off-the-shoulder styles which first made headlines in the fifties and sixties.
This summer UK women are far more likely to expose their clavicle, than cleavage and they will be right on trend, with celebrities including Beyoncé, Kendall Jenner, Katy Perry, Kate Hudson, and body confidence advocate Jameela Jamil, embracing the look.
As fashionistas dub the trend the “off-the-shoulder-smoulder”, the curve of a shoulder and elegant line of a collar-bone, is proving more popular than the “slashed to the navel”, ultimate-exposure garments of last year.
Spokesperson for Simply Be said: “The lovely thing about the resurgence of the Bardot-style -tops and dresses is that they are so wearable for women of all shapes and sizes. There have been a lot of “bosom-baring” styles out there in recent years and for many people those fashions were too revealing and just not practical, or comfortable.
“The elegance and subtle sexiness of flashing just a little flesh and leaving something to the imagination, means this style has a timeless appeal to men and women. It is also very flexible, as off-the-shoulder dresses can include a little V-neck, or a fairly high boat-neck and a dropped sleeve can be ideal to hide a less than perfect upper arm, while revealing the smooth skin of the shoulder.”
In Brigitte Bardot’s day the tops were often black, white, or red and paired with full, prom skirts or Hepburn-style fitted cigarette pants. The more relaxed hippy, peasant look of the 60’s and 70’s had drawstring or elastic necklines that could slip off one shoulder or be worn down off both, often made from cheese-cloth and relaxed embroidered cottons.
Today’s look is a combination of the decades with smart off-the-shoulder tailoring for formal do’s and easy-wear, lace and elastic necklines to pull down, off one or two shoulders, for hot summer days and nights, as well as relaxed holiday wear. Shoppers can find out more about the ranges at www.simplybe.co.uk.
-ENDS-
For further information, please contact: Laura Costin: 0161 238 1762 or [email protected]
Notes to editors
N Brown Group is a leading multi-channel retailer headquartered in Manchester employing over 3.200 people. The company's strategy has been to focus each of the brands in its portfolio towards niche markets, which are poorly served on the high street, such as the plus size and more mature customer segments. The Group has total sales of over £830m as of May 2014 with online sales representing over 58% of total revenue. As part of its multi-channel strategy, N Brown Group operates ten Simply Be stores across the UK of which nine are dual facia with Jacamo. Current brands include Simply Be, Jacamo, Fashion World, JD Williams, Marisota, House of Bath, Figleaves, Gray & Osbourn and High and Mighty. The Group is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE: BWNG) and is a constituent of the FTSE250.
