Suited to last: The physical durability of formal trousers
If you had to guess what clothing types are explored in garment durability research, what comes to mind? If you thought jeans and basic tees, you’d be right.
In fact, when reviewing the literature for my PhD, 14 out of the 21 key durability studies looked at denim or t-shirts. Although both are important categories, this leaves a massive blind spot by ignoring the rest of our wardrobes in these research projects.
Beyond Jeans and Tees
To bridge this gap, I explored how to measure the physical durability of nine different product categories:
Formal trousers
Casual trousers
Denim
Leggings
Underwear
Formal shirts
T-shirts
PJ bottoms (woven)
PJ bottoms (knitted)
Over the next few months I will be sharing some of the top findings for each of these categories, starting with formal trousers.
Past studies such as the 2022 study by Cooper and Claxton found that fabric breakdown on formal trousers was the most common issue found on 50% of the disposed garments they assessed. That gave me a clear starting point, abrasion, wash performance and physical strength were going to be vital metrics.
In total, 20 different pairs of formal trousers were tested, spanning different brands, compositions and price points. The trousers were put through several different technical laboratory tests ranging from visual assessment after wash, to tensile strength and pilling.
So what did we find?
Interestingly, the formal trousers as a whole were the best performing category. While denim was famously pioneered as rugged 19th-century workwear, its reputation for superior longevity might not hold up in a modern context. Within my research, I pitted denim jeans against both formal and casual trousers to see how they compared. Interestingly, while the broad durability data showed no single winner across all categories, looking at individual technical tests revealed several significant performance variations in favour for formal trousers.
The mean abrasion result ( a test I explained in the last blog), across the 20 formal trousers tested was 65,000 revolutions, this is way higher than the industry requirement, which often sits between 10,000 - 20,000 revolutions. I found this quite interesting as research points to the reason formal trousers are thrown away is due to them being worn out. I expected this average to be far lower to explain this mode of failure.
Social Durability
However, it actually makes sense if you think about it…
People expect a higher level of durability from formal wear due to the context it is worn in. Every time it is worn it needs to look crisp, clean and smart. If it doesn’t? Well, that might signal the end of life to someone, even if the garment is still physically functional, it is no longer socially functional. The visual aspects here are just as important as functionality.
The function of a formal trouser is to make the wearer appear smart. Visual assessment (VA) after washing was naturally an important factor in determining end of life. If after a few washes the colour had faded and the surface of the fabric was disrupted we could presume the wearer wouldn’t be happy. VA provides an insight into how that garment might age over time from an aesthetic perspective. This includes an evaluation of how the colour has changed, whether the surface has been disrupted and changes to trims. Again, the mean result was high, displaying little changes to the garments after 50 wash and dry cycles.
The data continues to back up the idea that formal garments need to maintain a higher level of visual appearance. Formal shirts and formal trousers earned the top two spots across all categories for VA.
Does heavy equal durable?
The fabric weight of all garments tested was taken before and after washing. It might seem logical to assume that a heavier fabric would equate to a more durable one. A thicker fabric could be presumed to be more abrasion resistant as more friction needs to be applied to create a hole. Moreover, a heavier fabric might equate to a denser weave which in theory can withstand a larger amount of force before it breaks. So, it was surprising to find that the lighter formal trousers actually performed better, with the lightest fabric ranking in first place for overall durability.
Now, a theory I have here is that the garments with heavier fabrics are more susceptible to damage in the washing machine, causing them to perform worse in the visual assessment. As visual assessment was the second most important test used to determine durability and with the lighter fabrics performing better, this could have a direct effect on why there is a clear positive correlation between fabric weight and ranking.
Composition and price as durability indicators
One thing that has become clear through this research is that the fabric composition alone cannot determine durability. A popular composition for the formal trousers were a polyester, viscose and elastane blend. 10 out of the 20 assessed trousers had a composition ranging from approximately 60-75% polyester, 1-5% elastane and the rest viscose. These 10 garments ranged from the second most durable to the least durable in 20th place.
Interestingly, when the price was compared, with the expectation of one product, they were all within £12.50 of each other. And, before you ask, no, the most expensive did not come second. So, price really shouldn’t be used as an indicator of product durability for formal trousers. This is a concept that I first explored with my research group at Leeds, but we ended up using jeans and tees for that piece of work. It is interesting to see that this same finding applies to other clothing items too.
What my research highlights is that durability is rarely down to one factor. For formal trousers the appearance matters just as much as physical performance. A pair of suit trousers can still be physically wearable but if they are no longer deemed smart enough to fulfil the job they were bought to do their useful life may already be over. Which is why durability needs to be assessed in the context of the garment rather than a single test, material or metric.
WEFT works with brands and retailers across the world to understand clothing composition and recyclability, and works alongside brands to prepare for EPR and ESPR. Get in touch if you want to chat.
Dr. Kate Baker is the author of The Pick. She is a globally leading expert in garment durability and the EPR Technical Manager at WEFT.
Acknowledgements & Partners
I’d like to acknowledge that the work discussed here and in future posts could not have been completed without input from the Leeds Institute of Textiles and Colour (LITAC), The Clothworker’s Company and the Waste Resource Action Programme (WRAP) UK Textile Pack Members.
