The fall of celebrity fashion
July 14th 2009 07:39
Now I have to admit that I’m not the biggest fan of celebrity designers. Yes, some of them have a clue, but others it would seem are just cashing in on their celebrity. Suddenly they have enough intricate knowledge of scents to design perfumes, or the abundant flair and skill required to design entire fashion collections in addition to their forays into singing/acting/modeling/whate ver they can flog to the masses? I’m not convinced. For someone who is a tad pernickety when it comes to clothing, seeing names like Mandy Moore bandied about when it comes to fall lines makes me a tad queasy.
So when the likes of Lacroix is having to close down, hopefully albeit temporarily, is it any great surprise that Jennifer Lopez’s clothing line is having to do likewise? It’s almost sacrilege to put them in the same sentence let alone category, and if you ask me the name of Miss Lopez’s line is enough to warrant closing it down– would you wear something called Sweetface?
Even style icon SJP has suffered the same fate, although again, just because you play a style icon in a highly successful TV series, does that really translate to real life? Oh how gullible most of us must be. She sadly lost the home of her brand Bitten when retailer Steve & Barry’s filed for bankruptcy last November, so perhaps something was lost in translation.
When even staples like Abercrombie & Fitch who are by no means designer standard are suffering ongoing declining sales, it’s clear that even a famous name isn’t enough to keep you afloat in the fickle world of fashion, and it seems some celebs are learning that the hard way. One could also argue that a lack of alignment of the famous name with the line could also be cause for a decline, and when coupled with a crashing economy, can only spell bigger trouble. SJP’s Bitten line was a discount venture, but when the style icon she is also clearly thought to be in real life (ie Carrie Bradshaw) won’t be seen in less than Jimmy Choos, who’s going to buy into her cheap clothing line? We may be fashion followers, but stupid we are not.
One famous face who does seem to have the alignment right, and who has escaped unscathed, possibly actually better off at least so far, is Kanye West. With the "Air Yeezy" sneakers, which he put out in collaboration with Nike, Kanye seems to have a clear understanding of his fan base, who apparently share his idea that they are all fashion-forward street wear aficionados. Initially retailing for around $200, the celebrity endorsed sneakers are now selling for over $1,000 on eBay, and it’s impossible to get your hands on a pair from a store unless you’re prepared to wait in line overnight.
For me, for the most part, the loss of most of these “designer” labels isn’t much of a loss to the fashion world at all. I say let this economy remove the weeds from the garden of fashion royalty, and let the actors, singers and models of the world realize maybe they should stick to what got them famous in the first place.
Even style icon SJP has suffered the same fate, although again, just because you play a style icon in a highly successful TV series, does that really translate to real life? Oh how gullible most of us must be. She sadly lost the home of her brand Bitten when retailer Steve & Barry’s filed for bankruptcy last November, so perhaps something was lost in translation.
When even staples like Abercrombie & Fitch who are by no means designer standard are suffering ongoing declining sales, it’s clear that even a famous name isn’t enough to keep you afloat in the fickle world of fashion, and it seems some celebs are learning that the hard way. One could also argue that a lack of alignment of the famous name with the line could also be cause for a decline, and when coupled with a crashing economy, can only spell bigger trouble. SJP’s Bitten line was a discount venture, but when the style icon she is also clearly thought to be in real life (ie Carrie Bradshaw) won’t be seen in less than Jimmy Choos, who’s going to buy into her cheap clothing line? We may be fashion followers, but stupid we are not.
One famous face who does seem to have the alignment right, and who has escaped unscathed, possibly actually better off at least so far, is Kanye West. With the "Air Yeezy" sneakers, which he put out in collaboration with Nike, Kanye seems to have a clear understanding of his fan base, who apparently share his idea that they are all fashion-forward street wear aficionados. Initially retailing for around $200, the celebrity endorsed sneakers are now selling for over $1,000 on eBay, and it’s impossible to get your hands on a pair from a store unless you’re prepared to wait in line overnight.
For me, for the most part, the loss of most of these “designer” labels isn’t much of a loss to the fashion world at all. I say let this economy remove the weeds from the garden of fashion royalty, and let the actors, singers and models of the world realize maybe they should stick to what got them famous in the first place.
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