...
By Marni Rose McFall
Reporter
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
A quick scroll through social media right now will throw up a number of so-called recession indicators. But now, one has hit the hair salon. Enter the recession blonde.
Why It Matters
While an official recession has not been declared, JP Morgan has increased the likelihood of one to 60 percent, as multiple industries are facing layoffs and a trade war is affecting imported goods. As a mood of economic anxiety is impacting people all over the world, people are making changes to how they spend or save.
Read More on News
What Is "Recession Blonde?"
Recession blonde refers to hair that is darker with natural roots grown out. It is borne out of less frequent salon trips and characterized by a brown-tinted hue. Gone is bright bleach, in is a more toned-down, natural and easier to maintain brown-hued blonde.
...
While everyone is familiar with the mantra "blondes have more fun," unless you're a natural, the hair color has a high price tag attached, the cost of a bleach and tone typically starting anywhere between $150 and $200.
What To Know
It's not the first time that hair has provided a window into the economy. In 2009, the term "recession hair" was coined by the media, as many ditched their haircut and styling appointments following the 2008 financial crash.
Recession blonde is something of a rediscovery for the TikTok generation, where the trend has exploded.
One video shared on TikTok back in February by the creator Rebekah or Bewitched Beauty shows her filming her grown out roots and saying, "So how's the economy?" It's been viewed almost three million times as of reporting.
But is it translating from the screen to the salon? According to Brad Mondo, aka The Hair Guy, it is. Mondo, who has over 10 million followers on TikTok and is the CEO of hair care brand Xmondo told Newsweek that he has "definitely noticed," more people leaning into what he described as "lower maintenance hair color."
The tradition of analyzing consumer behavior to provide economic insights is a well-trodden path, and there have long been examples of recession indicators. The hemline index, which suggests that there is a correlation between women's skirt lengths and economic performance, positing that during economic booms, hemlines rise, resulting in shorter skirts while during economic downturns, hemlines fall, leading to longer skirts, was first introduced by economist George Taylor in the 1920s.
How reliable is this kind of indicator? Zubin Sethna, an author and expert in entrepreneurial marketing and consumer behavior previously told Newsweek: "Each of these unusual indicators provides a unique perspective on economic conditions, but they all come with specific strengths and limitations."
What People Are Saying
Brad Mondo, CEO of XMONDO told Newsweek via email: "This move toward subtle, tonal shifts instead of dramatic transformations is definitely reflective of a larger trend we're seeing: people still want to look good, but they want that beauty to be practical, fast, and affordable."
What's Next
The Trump administration has consistently downplayed the possibility of a recession, but economists are increasingly erring toward the possibility of an economic downturn in 2025.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines