2020 Has Made Us All Buy A Pair Of Birkenstocks, As Evidenced By This Photograph Of Katie Holmes

The two-strap sandals are the only shoe to be seen in.

Updated on26th August 2020 at 10.09am

2020’s most sought-after product is a pair of Birkenstock sandals - and Katie Holmes appears to be one of their biggest fans. Spotted out and about yesterday, the actor wore a pair of two-strap sandals, the brand's Arizona Ramses style, with a low-key outfit of a grey tank and baggy jeans. In fact, she's been wearing them day in day out for the past few months, along with fellow repeat-wearers Kendall Jenner, Bella Hadid and Alessandra Ambrosio.

Katie Holmes ©Getty

This year's hottest brand, meanwhile, is Nike. Both these points prove that this year is one of the history books. Between the coronavirus pandemic and the acts of racism and police brutality that sparked Black Lives Matter protests across the globe, it’s fair to say that the status quo has been thoroughly unsettled.

The Lyst Index Q2, the quarterly data report that ranks the hottest brands and products, shows how much the consumer mindset has been affected by what’s happening in the world.

Nike topping the hottest brand chart, followed by Off-White, Gucci, Balenciaga and Prada, marks the first time that a luxury fashion brand hasn’t claimed the number one spot. The sportswear brand’s success is intimately connected to our lockdown buying habits. As country after country started working from home, the demand for loungewear and activewear surged by 106% as we started exercising with Joe Wicks before our morning meetings.

As brands were called out over their responses to the Black Lives Matter movement, Nike also struck the right note with followers, posting an anti-racism video with the slogan ‘Don’t Do It’ that has clocked up 16 million likes since May. The brand also reflects the overwhelming shift towards digital as bricks-and-mortar stores were forced to close for months, reaching its 30% digital sales target for 2023 three years early and setting a new target of 50% digital sales.

Other brands to make the top 20 list have also been responding to what's happening in the world. Off-White's founder and CEO, Virgil Abloh, has created a $1 million scholarship fund to support the next generation of Black fashion industry leaders, as well as auctioning off a pair of Off-White x Nike sneakers and raising $187,000 for Black Lives Matter. As well as decreasing its annual shows from five to two, Gucci (3) was the highest scoring luxury brand in this year's Fashion Transparency Index with 48%.

Q2’s hottest products reveal an interesting picture of the consumer mindset amid coronavirus. As well as the practical entries you might expect (like Birkenstock’s Arizona sandals at 1, Calvin Klein’s bralette at 4 and Prada’s nylon gabardine shorts at 6), several proved that even a pandemic can’t kill off the cult purchase or the desire for escapism.

Cult Gaia’s Serita dress, worn by Hailey Bieber on a recent holiday and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, looks like the perfect reemergence dress for summer 2020 (claiming position 5), closely followed by H&M’s pink puff-sleeved dress that was part of a sustainable summer collection (coming in at position 9). As wearing a face mask has become mandatory in more and more public spaces, Marine Serre’s anti-pollution mask, part of a collaboration with R-PUR, was the second hottest product.