Prom Fashion In Britain Has Gone Totally American Teen Movie

It’s the inaugural Prom Night at Beyond Retro’s Brick Lane store, and gangs of girls in jeans are rifling through realms of 1980s pink taffeta frocks, beaded 1920s gowns and slinky Halston-esque 1970s disco dresses.

‘In the last few months we’ve seen online sales of prom dresses go through the roof, way more than in previous years,’ Beyond Retro’s Jenna Aarons tells The Debrief.

Yep – the lame, archaic, British high-school-disco is over; 2014 is officially the year that Britain got its prom on.

‘Proms are just as big a deal here as they are in the US, for sure,’ says 21-year-old Georgia Stone, a cheerleader at LCF, as she critically assess a beaded, batwing ivory 1970s gown. ‘Today it’s just like it is in the American movies, really – we all pose for pics, have dinner, then dance.

‘And there’s SO much pressure to look good – the cheerleading squad always dress to a theme – this year it’s “black&white”. But some of the girls do a costume change halfway through the night.’

Her friend, and prom-dress-shopping wingman is 20-year-old Becky Lyne. ‘Getting the right dress is seriously stressful,’ she says. ‘Last year everyone was judging each other, whispering “Ugh, have you SEEN her dress?” And everyone gets their nails, tan, hair and make-up done professionally. I didn’t get a tan and looked like a ghost, so I’ve learned my lesson.’

School and college proms used to be a thoroughly American affair. The closest we Brits got was in episodes of Gossip Girl, Glee and Friday Night Lights, flicks like High School Musical and Mean Girls, and in nurturing our retro-crushes on Molly Ringwald in Pretty In Pink and Winona Ryder in Heathers.

But this year, 95 per cent of British schools are holding school proms, and with five-star hotels, photobooths and limousines, they’re more ‘Kardashian wedding’ than ‘school disco’. Industry insiders estimate the prom industry to be worth around £80 million, and average spend is £244 per girl, with one in ten tipping £500.

High on the scale of prom-dress-disasters is the horror of wearing the same dress as another girl. ‘All the girls in my year have set up a Facebook group called “Hands Off It’s Mine”, where we upload the shot of our dress to bagsy it,’ says one 17-year-old shopper.

‘But some girls are trying to claim entire COLOURS, saying the rest of us can’t wear fuchsia because they are. I’ve left it late – just six weeks to go – and now I’m completely stuck.’

Instagram has definitely upped the dress-pressure. ‘When you’ve been snapped in a dress, you can never wear that dress again,’ says 18-year-old Lucy Fisher, who has travelled down from Leeds to find a dress in London. ‘And when the entire world can judge your prom dress, you can’t risk making a mistake.’

But one thing that hasn’t changed is that the only prom-dress input you want from your mum is when she puts her credit card in the card processor. ‘These teens already know what sort of dress they want – a lot of their knowledge is down to the bloggers,’ says Beyond Retro’s Benjamin Shackleton, who has worked there for the past four years and witnessed the rise and rise of prom-dressing.

‘They know OscarPRGirl’s wardrobe inside out. They have their own blog. They can identify Tom Ford-era Gucci sunglasses and spot a fake LV clutch across a crowded dancefloor.’

The fun bit is that retailers are seeing a return to extravagance, flamboyance and BIG dresses. ‘Ten years ago there was a real dip in demand for taffeta and elaborate dresses, and we asked suppliers to hold off,’ says vintage-clad shop worker Ashley Emerson. ‘Now the girls can’t get enough of it.’

‘Young people aren’t afraid to celebrate and be flamboyant any more,’ agrees her co-worker Benjamin Shackleton.

Everyone is seriously bored of recession dressing – and the best way to kiss the past goodbye is on the dancefloor, in a massive dress, with a glass of champagne. Just make sure you claim ‘canary yellow’ before some other bitch gets there....

Follow Anna on Twitter @AnnaDotHart

This article originally appeared on The Debrief.