Underconsumption Core

"My unpopular fashion opinion is you should wear an item to death", said queen of the summer, Charli XCX, in an interview by the TikTok account Offtrend. While Charli's opinion might still be unpopular, "underconsumption core," the term we have seen gain more and more popularity on TikTok during the last few months, reflects a cultural shift in which we seem to be moving away from overconsumption and toward underconsumption, which people also refer to as "normal consumption."

It is interesting to see this trend come about in 2024, as a Saturn-Neptune conjunction is forming in the sky (considering a 15º orb). Saturn is the principle of limit, constraint, concentration, maturity, responsibility, seriousness and wisdom. Neptune, on the other hand, is the archetype related to the spiritual dimension of life, ideals and aspirations, healing and wholeness, escapism, as well as, addiction. Thus, when they come together into angular alignment, it is common to see themes such as financial anxieties, deliberate modesty, and the renunciation of personal attachments on behalf of one’s spiritual ideals, play out.

Underconsumption core, interestingly, seems to come about hand in hand with the indie sleaze revival, another trend this year linked to the Saturn-Neptune conjunction. As mentioned, Saturn-Neptune times are characteristic of financial anxieties. During The Great Recession of the late 2000s–the original indie sleaze era–we were under a Saturn-Neptune opposition (considering a 10º orb). Now, in 2024, as the Saturn-Neptune conjunction unfolds, we are beginning to encounter something similar. "Younger generations are facing immense financial and economical pressures,” says Omar H Fares, a lecturer at Toronto Metropolitan University who specializes in consumer behavior. The worn in style that was popular in the late 2000s is coming back along with financial anxieties, as once again we are faced with the necessity to wear our garments "to death."

Not only is the potential economic crisis a factor that is driving us to consume more mindfully, but so is climate change. “Consumers are becoming more conscious of the environment, especially younger consumers," says H Fares. "This level of growing consciousness may be a driving factor in consuming less,” he adds. With Saturn-Neptune world transits, there also comes an urge to put one's ideals (Neptune) into practice (Saturn). Perhaps we are seeing this manifest during the current conjunction, particularly regarding the climate crisis and the growing awareness of the habits that contribute to it.

Another key element of the Saturn-Neptune archetype is that of the renunciation of personal attachments on behalf of one’s spiritual ideals. We have been conditioned to buy into consumerism for quite some time now, and a good amount of us are increasingly growing tired and disillusioned by it. "People are starting to realize that consumerism can make us feel lonely because it pushes us to seek fulfillment and happiness in material possessions, rather than meaningful relationships", says sustainability influencer Sabrina Pare. "Many people buy things for fulfillment, but those feelings don’t tend to last long, so then they buy something again, and it’s a vicious endless cycle of consumption", she adds. Saturn-Neptune aspects tend to encourage us (and even, often, force us) to look inward, into spirituality for fulfillment, instead of looking for material gains. This is something we might begin to see more of, as Saturn and Neptune alignment tightens.

According to trend forecaster Shanu Walpita, defluencing, defashioning and other de/core buzzwords we have been seeing over the last few years have been hinting at this shift in consumer mindset for a while now. “Consumers are celebrating minimalism as a form of activism,” she says. I get the feeling that this shift will continue expanding, as the Saturn-Neptune conjunction unfolds from 2024 to 2027.