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Imagine you have an iPod mini, preferably metallic pink. You toggle to the song Milkshake by Kelis, there in black pixelated font. You plug in your wired headphones, and without any notifications to distract you, you click play. About twenty years before a little espresso fueled an addictively candy-coated cultural renaissance of feminine braggadocio, Kelis brought the boys to the yard in super low-rise jeans. (Bossy.) Now, Gap is bringing both back. The casual clothing brand is today relaunching its early 2000s long and lean denim style, which was first available between 2001 and 2010, for $89.95. This time around, the style comes in ten new washes and a few smart design updates for better wearability, along with a campaign featuring girl group Katseye performing Milkshake. Brace yourself, the long and lean is low-rise. And Gap’s not stopping there: it’s also releasing existing denim fits like its super baggy and 90’s straight in low-rise versions as well. If mass market American brand Gap is going all in on low-rise this fall, thats a major signal the cut is back in full force. Another marker of Y2K’s comeback Low-rise denim has been making its comeback for a little while now, especially by fashions early adopters. Search interest in low rise jeans officially surpassed high rise jeans over a year ago, in May 2024, and this month search interest in the navel-baring style has reached an all-time high, according to Google Trends August report. Other clothing thats searched at an all-time high this August? Polo shirt, babydoll top, and baby tee. Holy Abercrombie! Vintage hollister and hollister 2000s, referring to the olfactory-forward mall brand, were also top search terms, and considering the broader, rolling return of Y2K styles and brands over the past few years (camis, trucker hats, bedazzled sweatsuits and jeans, rimless sunglasses, etc.,) it was only a matter of time between corresponding denim styles returned to consumer shopping carts. Gaps own internal data proved out increasingly positive consumer sentiment for low rise jeans. The design team clocked low rises return to street stylea place they often look to for emerging trendsover the past couple of years and put feelers out with their customer. But they were too early. Until now. Weve been kind of waiting for this moment, says senior vice president and general manager of Gap Specialty Noelle Rogers. We tested a few times on low rise and it wasnt until the last nine, ten months that the customer was ready. Then they scaled. “We always say, ‘we’re trend but not too trend,” adds Pattinson. “But there is this new customer that is very trend aware. Gen Z is so into everything.” And so Gap’s contemporary low rise portfolio makes a play for the large, existing customer base who used to buy the style, as well as Gen Z first-timers. Putting a style online early, even if its customer isn’t ready, allows the company to move fast once a trend goes big. Now that low rise is taking off broadly, Gap is ensuring that millennialsthose in their teens or 20s the first time this trend came aroundwill be comfortable wearing the midriff-challenging design again. Gap is making design changes to the waistband and pant legs that make low rise more approachable. “From the 2000s, it was all about this one fit,” says Pattinson. “Now, you have this big story which is low rise, but many fits within that, because we need that inclusivity and diversity. That’s the big, big difference of where we were in the 2000s. It’s a change. Still the same voice, but just speaking to it differently.” The company ran a smaller batch of the long and lean style online last fall to test how itd perform, and based off of a high volume of sales from that period, decided to go all in, increasing the styles production and range to meet projected customer demand. There’s a real appetite for this new proportion, says Gap senior vice president and global head of design Jane Pattinson. When I met with her, she paired her Gap barrel jeans with a strappy Celine heeled sandal. Sky high and high rise and mid-rise are still important; its just something new. [Photo: Gap] Get low The Long and Lean style was a huge part of early 2000s Gap, worn by celebrities like Salma Hayek, Alanis Morissette, and Sarah Jessica Parker, and is a main character of many of its campaigns from the period, along with the Gap tag, for every generation. In the Gap archives, near racks of vintage colorblocked windbreakers, corduroy caps, and a pull of vintage long and lean denim, Pattinson explains that while the archive is a treasure trove of inspiration, for now, this generations long and lean (and low-rise denim overall) is not the 2.5 zipper lowrise of yesteryear. Indeed, the long and lean hits about an inch below the navel, closer to a midrise style than Christina Aguilera-at-the-2001-VMA-awards or Keira-Knightley-and-Jamie-Dornan-paparazzi-shots underwear baring, below the hipbone jeans. Its definitely low rise but its not super low, says Pattinson. Thats key. The waistband also has a contoured shape that does away with the bucket back design flaw common to lower-rise pants of the early 2000s. Pattinson and he team also hiked up the back a bit and lowered the front for what she describes as a more relevant and flattering fit. They also added 1%-6% stretch for comfort, depending on the wash, and 1/4″ longer inseam. They tested the jeans on fit models of multiple sizes. Pointing to the wider waistbands, hemlines, washes and tints of the archival denim, she notes that theres more and more we can add. The silhouette of the pant leg is a slim boot cut that Pattinson describes as a cross between a flare and a boot. Its not nearly as common as the wide leg jeans that are everywhere today, but Pattinson says shes seen it all over Gen Zers, which is indicative of its comeback. Were positioned to bridge this generation gap, says Rogers. Now that were obsessed with it, we see it everywhere says Pattinson, who adds that shes seen it worn in a very polished way with a tank a ballet flat. The “long and lean” is the company’s hero low-rise style, but for those who arent quite ready for a full 2000s redux, the company is now also offering a broad range of pant styles with a low-rise waist, like baggy, loose, and straight. “It’s nice to have a hero and then the range, since range of fits has been what’s really been driving the business,” says Rogers. “Which is choice. One day you want to wear long and lean and then one day you want to wear loose.” Customers don’t have to choose. They can buy both.
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E-Commerce
Air Canada said Tuesday it will gradually restart operations after reaching an agreement with the union for 10,000 flight attendants to end a strike that disrupted the travel plans of hundreds of thousands of travelers.The union first announced the agreement early Tuesday after Air Canada and the union resumed talks late Monday for the first time since the strike began over the weekend. The strike is affecting about 130,000 travelers a day at the peak of the summer travel season.Canada’s largest airline said flights will start resuming Tuesday evening. Flight attendants walked off the job early Saturday after turning down the airline’s request to enter into government-directed arbitration, which allows a third-party mediator to decide the terms of a new contract.The union said the agreement will guarantee members pay for work performed while planes are on the ground, resolving one of the major issues that drove the strike.“Unpaid work is over. We have reclaimed our voice and our power,” the union said in a statement. “When our rights were taken away, we stood strong, we fought back and we secured a tentative agreement that our members can vote on.”Chief executive Michael Rousseau said restarting a major carrier is a complex undertaking and said regular service may require seven to 10 days. Some flights will be canceled until the schedule is stabilized.“Full restoration may require a week or more, so we ask for our customers’ patience and understanding over the coming days,” Rousseau said in a statement.The two sides reached the deal with the help of a mediator early Tuesday morning. The airline said mediation discussions “were begun on the basis that the union commit to have the airline’s 10,000 flight attendants immediately return to work.” Air Canada declined to comment further on the agreement until the ratification process is complete. It noted a strike or lockout is not possible during this time.Earlier, Air Canada said rolling cancellations would now extend through Tuesday afternoon after the union defied a second return-to-work order.The Canada Industrial Relations Board had declared the strike illegal Monday and ordered the flight attendants back on the job. But the union said it would defy the directive. Union leaders also ignored a weekend order to submit to binding arbitration and end the strike by Sunday afternoon.The board is an independent administrative tribunal that interprets and applies Canada’s labor laws. The government ordered the board to intervene.Labor leaders objected to the Canadian government’s repeated use of a law that cuts off workers’ right to strike and forces them into arbitration, a step the government took in recent years with workers at ports, railways and elsewhere.“Your right to vote on your wages was preserved,” the union said in a post on its website.Air Canada operates around 700 flights per day. The airline estimated Monday that 500,000 customers would be affected by flight cancellations.Aviation analytics firm Cirium said that as of Monday afternoon, Air Canada had called off at least 1,219 domestic flights and 1,339 international flights since last Thursday, when the carrier began gradually suspending its operations ahead of the strike and lockout that began early Saturday.Toronto’s Pearson International Airport, Canada’s largest, said it will deploy additional staff to assist passengers and support startup operations.Passengers whose flights are impacted will be eligible to request a full refund on the airline’s website or mobile app, according to Air Canada. Rob Gillies, Associated Press
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E-Commerce
I learned very early in my professional life that there are two paths to career success. Become an expert at one specific thing. Or master a few skills and leverage them simultaneously.The second option is working for me. Becoming a skills-powered professional is how I can survive the future of work. The narrow expert path doesnt work for everyone. New research from McKinsey shows that 44% of Americans want to switch careers, but nearly half say their biggest obstacle is a lack of skills. The biggest skills gap isnt a lack of technical knowledge; its a lack of adaptability. Employers want people who learn fast, wear different hats, and solve cross-functional problems. In short, they want generalists. Just be enough You dont need to be everything. You just need to be enough of many things. You cant master everything. Thats not the point. A generalist is strategically skilled in diverse areas. They are able to connect the dots others dont see. As David Epstein writes in his bestselling book Range, Modern work demands knowledge transferthe ability to apply knowledge to new situations and domains. To thrive in the future of work, think of yourself as a Swiss Army knife, built for the complexity of the productive environment. Skill stacking What you can do now is stack your skills. Then make them talk to each other. What makes you indispensable isnt in any one ability. Its a combination of transferable skills. Lets say youre decent at writing, coding, and psychology. Individually, none of those put you at the top. But together? You might be the professional an employer needs to design an app with a better user interface. And human behavior knowledge is integrated into every interaction. Skill stacking can raise your market value by making you proficient (if not necessarily exceptional) in multiple areas. Make peace with not being the best In any room, theres always someone who knows more about something. Becoming a generalist means focusing on what fits you. It means letting go of being the best at one thing, especially when the rules keep changing. Become the most adaptable. The most curious. The most useful in unexpected ways. Employers want people with a diverse skill set who can adapt to the changing demands of work. A generalist has a beginners mindset Every new skill you learn humbles you. It teaches you to learn faster, listen better, and synthesize across departments. Over time, you stop pursuing titles and start stacking tools that can help you become adaptable. Right now, talent is everywhere. AI can out-code us. Specialists can outshine in narrow fields. But no one else can have your exact set of skills, experiences, and insights. Your generalist path can become your defence against becoming obsolete. Dont just pursue a career. Build capability Careers are changing fast. Roles are disappearing. Even titles are evolving. But capabilities stick. Learn how to write clearly. Think critically. And present ideas. Invest in survival skills. Theyre what employers really want. Being good at many things, combined with the ability to switch context fast, is now a competitive edge. Im not saying reject mastery. If something makes you come alive, by all means, hone in on it. But be open to building a bridge across many domains. You dont need to fit into one box The world of work wont stop changing. Professionals like you who adapt, connect, and evolve will be ready for the uncertainties. Its how you stay useful when the rules change. The more skills you build, the more freedom you earn. Freedom to switch, lead, and secure your career. Stack your skills. You dont need to out-specialize anyone. You just need to be able to connect the dots that matter. And solve problems from multiple angles. A generalist knows how to learn, pivot, and apply knowledge across fields. Get into what excites you Become what psychologist Carl Rogers calls the fully functioning person. Someone open to experience and always evolving. The best generalists are not just jacks-of-all-trades; theyre masters of reinvention. Specialists see the trees. Generalists see the forest and the paths between them. You can offer both skills and perspective. Thats why companies now prioritize learning ability over fixed expertise. Stay curious. Stay flexible. The future isnt about what you know. Its about how fast you can learn. Like Bruce Lee said, Be water, my friend. Thats how generalists win.
Category:
E-Commerce
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