History of Zoot Suits

Posted by Aaron Sarfati on Jul 19, 2023

When it comes to the history of zoot suits. Many things have changed. The zoot suits of today are a bit different than the zoot suits of yesteryear. The zoot suits of the 1930s and 1940s had wide padded shoulder coats with high waisted pants that were very baggy in the leg and tightly peg legged on bottom and were originally worn by the Pachuco who are a Mexican-American group originating in El Paso Texas and Ciudad Juarez Mexico. The Pachuco were a brash and bold group who liked to dress to impress wearing flashy style clothing and these long jacket Pachuco suits were just way to do it.


The Zoot Suit was a 1930s counter culture icon in the way that long hair was for the Hippie Movement. If you wore a Zoot Suit you were pretty much snubbing your nose at tradition. Wearing a Zoot Suit back then for a Pachuco was almost like giving the middle finger to those in the seats of Power. It was a statement that told every one that "I do what I want whether you like it or Not". Zoot Suit History started almost overnight with no exact pinpoint of birth. Almost Viral if you will.

Zoot suits back then were worn almost exclusively by The Pachuco and Black American Men almost as a protest to style constraints. During World War Two, zoot suit production was not allowed because of the immense usage of fabric for the coat which was in short supply for the war effort. Zoot Suit History always seems to be brought back to life in movies such as "Malcolm X" and "The Mask" as well as many other movies showing zoot suits in history.

The zoot suits in the 1930s were made of inferior fabric. Modern zoot suits are made of fabrics woven on computerized state of the art weaving machines that can weave fabric so fine that they can duplicate fine silk. Modern zoot suits thankfully don't have to worry about such problems of poorly woven fabric. Modern zoot suits have a more tailored look which looks far more elegant than zoot suits of old. Modern zoot suits use far superior fabric due to modern technology and fit and look much better. Feel