From Ralph Lauren to Calvin Klein, firms pinning hopes on blue jean revival

Yet while Levi Strauss & Co. struggled for years to stave off pressure from stretchy pants, there are signs of a rebound

From Ralph Lauren to Calvin Klein, America’s biggest fashion labels are pinning their hopes on a blue jean revival. Across the industry, fashion brands are renewing their focus on denim, betting the wardrobe staple can be a major sales driver as jeans battle stretchy pants for supremacy from the waist down. The jeanmaking industry has been just as distressed as the ripped denim of the same name. Last year, imports of elastic knit pants surpassed those of jeans for the first time ever, according to the US Census Bureau.

Making things worse, blue jean styles have been largely stagnant over