The Outdated Early Aughts Handbag Trend That's Coming Back With A Vengeance In 2025

In 2025, loud luxury is shouting from the shoulders. Those bold, flashy, brand-plastered bags we thought we'd left behind in the early aughts have come back with a vengeance, appearing across Spring 2025 runways. Fendi baguettes, Dior saddles, and oversized logos are being hoisted once more with unapologetic flair, according to San Diego personal stylist Cynthia Kennedy. The aesthetic "is definitely having a moment again — and honestly, it makes perfect sense," Kennedy exclusively told Women.

Fashion has long styled itself as a proxy for economic mood. These days, you don't need a Bloomberg terminal to detect market dread: you just need a front-row seat at Fashion Week or a reasonably active TikTok feed. When the economy tightens its belt, so does fashion. Dressing turns conservative: Hemlines drop, colors fade, and logos retreat into hiding. And so, in the uneasy wake of the pandemic, the quiet luxury aesthetic became the order of the day. Tonal palettes, soft tailoring, and a lack of branding were everywhere — all in service of the idea that money talks, but wealth whispers.

Even as 2025 dawned, some of the last holdouts doubled down on a wardrobe designed for pre-emptive caution. Pretty Little Thing's shake-up (swapping club-wear for beige blazers) spoke volumes. So, too, did Pantone's Color of the Year: Mocha Mousse, a shade that acknowledged people had been channeling their inner Shiv Roy in the years since lockdown. But fashion, like the economy it shadows, doesn't stay still for long. These moves now feel like the last gasp of quiet luxury — a final bow before loud luxury storms back onto the scene. As Kennedy puts it, "We've had a long run of quiet, minimalist style – all the neutrals and 'stealth wealth' looks – but there's definitely a shift happening."

When economic uncertainty drags on, restraint in dressing eventually starts to chafe, and the desire to shake things up struts back into view — just look at the mob wife aesthetic that took over TikTok. That's when maximalism resurfaces and "feels exciting again," as Kennedy puts it. This loud resurgence is a form of joyful, nostalgic indulgence. 

Just like the logo-laden tote, Alexander McQueen's skull scarves, once the uniform of 2000s rebellion, have reappeared, and micro shorts are suddenly back in rotation — shifts spotted by Data But Make It Fashion and interpreted, semi-ironically, as a harbinger of economic rebound. Even if the numbers don't inspire total confidence, accessories and clothes are starting to perform optimism. "In a time when everything feels uncertain, sometimes a little luxury — even the loud kind — feels like an empowering way to take up space," says Kennedy.

"For Gen Z especially, subtle just isn't the vibe," Kennedy adds. "They grew up online, where style is about showing your personality, catching attention, and standing out." Much like the MySpace age of the 2000s, which birthed many aughts trends, 2025 belongs to a new generation fluent in digital self-expression on TikTok and Instagram. The internet, then and now, is a stage for personal style to reflect cultural flux. "A bold designer bag — whether it's covered in logos or has a dramatic shape — isn't just about the label, it's about saying something," Kennedy says. "It's a way to be seen and show who you are without saying a word."