The Problematic Rebrand of Pretty Little Thing
by Alicia McCormack
Pretty Little Thing, also known as PLT, was essential for every Irish teenage girl. I clicked on for the first time when I was thirteen years old and purchased a top for a disco, that got comments from my parents such as ‘is this what they call a top now? In my day that was a bandana’. The glitzy website with sparkling sequins, crop tops and miniskirts dominated the 2010s ‘party girl’ image. I would later learn that PLT was a fast fashion machine, churning out millions of low-quality trends produced by exploited workers. I stopped using it and virtually forgot about its existence.
Until, I was inundated with TikToks slating the PLT ‘rebrand’. I revisited the site to find the winged unicorn bursting out of the bright pink logo gone, the vibrant catalogue vanished. [1] The new PLT is defined by neutral shades. The clothes are business-casual, featuring waistcoats, maxi dresses and long sleeves. The logo is a calligraphy-style ‘PLT’ that looks like the emblem of a luxury perfume. This brand claims to be the ‘style source for every kind of IT girl’.
PLT’s ‘IT girl’ embodies the ‘quiet luxury’ aesthetic captivating social media. ‘Old money’ is back in and the new ‘IT girl’ doesn’t scream her status. She expresses it through simple but expensive items that whisper wealth and class. PLT experienced revenue slashes in 2024 which evidently forced the team to rethink their brand and hop on the newest trend bandwagon. [2] There is nothing wrong with change, but the radical shift could indicate something sinister.
It coincides with the romanticization of tradition and conservatism. [3] The new ‘IT girl’ is a ‘trad wife’ like influencers Nara Smith and Hannah Neeleman, who have inspired millions of followers with their lives as stay-at-home wives and mothers financially reliant on successful husbands. [4] ‘Old money aesthetic’ was searched two million times on Pinterest, revealing images of wealthy white women from the 1950s ‘Golden Age’ of America, who are the ‘aspirational blueprint’ for this generation. [5] Fashion has adapted to reflect this, and evidently so has PLT. The hems have dropped to below the knee, the belly buttons are covered up, even the ‘sexy tops’ leave everything to the imagination. Fashion trends mirror political and social change. The New York Post linked the traction of the ‘Americana’ aesthetic with Trump’s election victory. [4] His presidency has generated a surge in misogyny and a longing for old patriarchal times that has affected how women perceive their role in society. Trump and nostalgia for the ‘1950s housewife’ may not be as separate as we think.
PLT also gained attention for a significant step backwards – the lack of diversity. As Trump abolishes DEI initiatives, PLT refuses to make clothes for everybody. The new models are almost entirely white and thin and plus sizes are no longer available. [5] This is a blow to the body positivity movement which has already suffered from recent fixation on gym and diet culture. The lack of representation of women of colour re-affirms that they are excluded from the ‘quiet luxury’ world. The aesthetic worships white generational wealth, realistically created from the oppression of other groups. Black wealth is typically seen as ‘new money’ and too ‘tacky’ to fit in. Black models and models of colour are excluded from depictions of this lifestyle. [5] PLT’s ‘IT girl’ is one, specific type of girl, implying that different women are not worthy of this ranking.
PLT needs to be conscious of its harmful messaging but also of its responsibility to customers, workers and the environment. It commands a luxury aesthetic to attract new audiences and excuse price hikes, but the quality has not improved. ‘Quiet luxury’ fashion is about making an investment in durable items. PLT charges £50 for the same cheap material that once sold for £10. Lisa (24) bought a blazer and skirt in the belief that PLT was now ‘high-end’ only to receive ill-fitting garments that crumpled after a few wears. PLT changed their website but not their reputation. As well as scamming customers, undercover investigations found their workers labouring for a meagre £3.50 an hour. [1] How much profit are PLT making from doubling prices while putting no extra effort into production and likely continuing to underpay workers? Instead of using their rebrand as a chance to become sustainable and ethical, they continue to accelerate the fast fashion problem through a bland mask.
The PLT rebrand has multi-faceted reasons and impacts. It remains a company that shamelessly damages the environment and exploits its labour force. Not only this, it has taken further dangerous steps in its erasure of diversity and catering towards concerning shifts in values and norms. If there’s one thing we can learn from it, fashion reflects the world around it and cannot be ignored as a sign of what is to come.
References
[1] Katie Rosseinsky. (2025). The glaring problem with Pretty Little Thing’s rebrand. The Independent. [Online]. 7 March 2025. Available at https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/pretty-little-thing-rebrand-b2710164.html [Accessed 7 March 2025].
[2] Gina Kalsi. (2025). I tried PrettyLittleThing’s ‘ugly’ rebranded clothes and was baffled when someone said I looked like a crumpled McDonald’s bag. The Daily Mail. [Online]. 10 March 2025. Available at https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-14472337/pretty-little-thing-rebrand-ugly.html [Accessed 21 March 2025].
[3] Tayler Adigun. (2025). Why Pretty Little Thing’s Rebrand is Lowkey Problematic. [Online]. Blavity. Last Updated: 10 March 2025. Available at: https://blavity.com/blavity-original/pretty-little-thing-rebrand-problematic-conservative [Accessed 22 March 2025].
[4] Brooke Kato. (2024). Fashion’s ‘return to conservatism’ may have predicted Trump win: ‘Written on the wall’. The New York Post. [Online]. 15 November 2024. Available at https://nypost.com/2024/11/15/lifestyle/fashions-return-to-conservatism-may-have-predicted-trump-win/ [Accessed 22 March 2025].
[5] Ellie Macieira-Fielding. (2025). Here’s why Pretty Little Thing’s rebrand proves that fashion is quietly pushing conservative values. [Online]. The New Feminist. Last Updated: 5 March 2025. Available at: https://thenewfeminist.co.uk/2025/03/heres-why-prettylittlethings-rebrand-proves-that-fashion-is-qui [Accessed 22 March 2025].
