Can Your Skirt Length Point to the Next Boom or Bust?
Charting the Ups and Downs
The idea that hemlines reflect the economy’s fortunes was first perpetuated in the roaring twenties, as women began showing some leg for the first time in seeming celebration of the thriving times. Economist George Taylor — who wrote his PhD dissertation on the hosiery industry — posited that the “Hemline Index” could be used as an economic indicator. But is it true? Do stocks rise along with hemlines? And do lengthening skirts indicate recessions? You be the judge ...
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Photo: Getty Images / The Fiscal Times