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The announcement of Oasis' 41-date reunion tour sparked a notable boom in fashion
Josie ClarkeFriday 12 December 2025 00:01 GMT
CloseRelated: Oasis perform 'Acquiesce' on opening night of reunion tour
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A scorching summer, the highly anticipated Oasis reunion tour, and persistent cost-of-living pressures significantly shaped consumer spending this year, according to John Lewis.
The department store's twelfth annual How We Shop, Live And Look report details distinct purchasing patterns across its stores and Waitrose supermarkets.
The UK's warmest summer on record saw predictable surges in demand for fans, ice cream, and outdoor furniture.
However, an unprecedented four major heatwaves extended the summer's influence, leading to increases in swimwear sales, up 18 per cent in September and 28 per cent in October.
Outdoor cooking equipment also remained popular, with sales soaring by 42 per cent in October compared to the previous year.
open image in galleryThe department store's twelfth annual How We Shop, Live And Look report details distinct purchasing patterns across its stores and Waitrose supermarkets (Getty Images)Adding a nostalgic twist, the announcement of Oasis's Live '25 41-date reunion tour sparked a notable boom in fashion. The retailer observed a 40 per cent rise in sales of parkas and bucket hats during the first half of 2025, compared to the same period a year earlier, as fans prepared for the iconic band's return.
Baggy trousers, sheer dresses, crop tops and check overshirts drove sales spikes in fashion nostalgia, alongside the return of other 90s-defining acts, including Pulp at Glastonbury and Radiohead, which launched their first tour in seven years.
A “hit” nostalgia seller was a Bluetooth speaker in the shape of a tape cassette, an item that features prominently on the Netflix show Stranger Things, which returned to screens for its fifth and final series in November.
Meanwhile, searches for sewing machines were up 50 per cent on the year before, and a poll by John Lewis of its customers found that just 38 per cent said they would throw out and replace an item of clothing if it became ripped or worn out, and nearly half (46 per cent) said they would patch it up themselves.
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Some 29 per cent of those aged 18 to 28 said they frequently wore something more than 30 years old, and eight in 10 said they bought second-hand fashion.
After Waitrose reported a rise in sales of blocks of butter, John Lewis said searches for butter dishes were up 108 per cent.
Jason Billings Cray, gifts buyer at John Lewis, said: “The butter dish is becoming the nation’s new obsession.
open image in galleryFour major heatwaves extended the summer's influence, leading to increases in swimwear sales, up 18 per cent in September and 28 per cent in October (Ben Birchall/PA)“We’ve seen the ‘butter yellow’ trend across fashion, beauty and interiors, and butter boards take over foodie feeds and now this once-humble kitchen staple has firmly entered the spotlight.
“We’ve seen a rise in popularity of other traditional kitchen items too – think teapots, spoon rests and casserole dishes – but the butter dish is the nation’s next obsession.”
Meanwhile, John Lewis stopped selling sous vide machines, finding that “today’s cooks prefer messy generosity over molecular gastronomy”, reflected in searches for the gadget falling by 50 per cent compared to 2024.
It also significantly reduced its stock of men’s skinny jeans, which now make up less than 5 per cent of its total jeans offering, down from 15 per cent in 2019.
Beth Pettet, head of fashion brands at John Lewis, said: “We’ve seen our customers move to a more relaxed fit. It’s also quite an elegant look.”
John Lewis managing director Peter Ruis said: “It’s clear that customers really embraced colour, comfort and fun again – from big garden parties, 90s tunes on repeat or butter dishes making a comeback.”