Prom style guide: Whether you buy new or secondhand, here’s how to help your teen shop

This year, Alkhalili says customers are asking for features such as structured or corset bodices, big slits, statement trains and open backs. Dresses with shimmer or sparkle are also popular. “You’ll see a lot of details within either sparkle tulle or sparkle hand-beaded pearls or crystals all around the dress,” says Alkhalili. And pastels may be losing favour compared with bolder and darker hues. “My friends and I right now are really into deep, darker colours,” says Yu. “Burgundy red or deeper reds and navy blues and a foresty green.” Along similar lines, Alkhalili says that she has observed strong demand for various shades of blue – including navy and royal blue – as well as burgundy, and lots of requests for pale yellow.

Scoop and V-necklines are popular right now, and Alkhalili notes that some customers have asked for straps to be added to styles originally designed as strapless. “Straps [are] super in because a lot of people here are going for comfort,” says Alkhalili. “They understand that it’s a long event, they’re younger, they want to feel very comfortable throughout the day.”

Teens are searching for where to buy short prom dresses online; over the past month, there were more than three times as many searches for “short prom dress” as “prom maxi dress,” according to Google Search trends data.

Dresses may be the default, but girls are also opting for pant suits and even tuxedos for prom. “Recently I’ve seen more people … wearing pants to formal events, and I think that’s really cool and really interesting,” says Yu. On the red carpet, celebs such as Blackpink’s Lisa and Cynthia Erivo have been gravitating toward sets that borrow from traditional men’s wear codes. Think: pinstripes, padded shoulders and boxy silhouettes.

When it comes to accessories, less can be more. So while sparkly and statement shoes are still popular – as well as tiaras for those with “princess dreams” – clutches are no longer a must-have, says Alkhalili, noting that more dresses come with pockets nowadays. “[It’s] either the earrings or the shoes and then everything else is just kept minimal,” says Alkhalili. “A lot of people are opting out of necklaces as well this year.” Some teens are embracing comfort when it comes to footwear. “Personally, I really like wearing heels with dresses and dressy outfits. But a lot of my friends right now would rather wear sneakers with them,” says Yu.

Tuxedos, in classic black as well as other colours, continue to be a red-carpet staple and are rising in popularity for prom. In fact, Tip Top went from offering one tuxedo two years ago to launching a 10-piece “tux shop” this year. “The business is on fire,” says Braund. “People are buying the tuxes.”

There’s been a “real emergence of bright colours” in formal wear, says Braund, noting that while a colourful suit worn head-to-toe will make a bold fashion statement at prom, the same pieces can also be worn separately afterward, too. “You can get a suit for under 300 bucks and turn it into multiple pieces going forward,” says Braund. “There’s nothing cooler than a pair of jeans, a white T-shirt and then a poppy suit jacket.”

On fashion runways and the red carpet, looser, more relaxed suiting is having a moment. The key here is to ensure a good fit at the waist and in the pant inseam, but opting for straight or wide-leg trousers instead of something slim fitting.

Accessories can be a fun way for teens to co-ordinate with their date. Customers will often come into Tip Top and ask for a tie to match their date’s dress, for example. “We have 30 colours to make sure … he’s going to match the date,” says Braund. At Candy Prom, “a lot of people have been cutting their dress when they do the hemming and using that to make bow ties and ties,” says Alkhalili.