"Once seen as a symbol of conformity and oppression, the school uniform has over the past two years become ultrachic among Japanese girls. Many are wearing uniforms, or clothes that look like uniforms, on weekends and after school. Some girls wear uniforms even though their schools have no dress code. Ozakishoji Co., a uniform maker in western Japan, is seeing stronger-than-expected sales despite a shrinking population of students."
This is not necessarily good news. If you take fashion as an expression of the collective unconscious, the yearning for uniforms may be a yearning for security, reliability, protection, and unification. Not a good sign.
Joanna