Monday, March 28, 2016

Who Needs Negative Interest Rates to Spur Consumer Spending When You Have Demna Gvasalia?

Of course, consumer spending does not drive an economy, production and capital investments do, but the work of Demna Gvasalia should please confused Keynesians who think it is about spending.

Gvasalia, 34, is the lead designer at Vetements, where he has created the $750 and up hoodie.

Yes, like this is one:




In its early days, I did some financial consulting  for the True Religion jeans company. I had never heard of them before working with them. When I was told they might need my services, I thought it was a bible publishing company or something. I don't think anyone knew who they were at the time. That changed.

They hired a top marketing guru to get the word out on their high priced jeans. He told them, forget doing traditional advertising. get celebrities to wear your jeans, that will get the buying going. It, of course, did the trick. I quickly learned that it was not a bad thing to casually mention in hot bar scenes that I was doing consulting work for True Religion. 

Getting rags on celebrities appears to still work.

NyPo on the latest rag trick:


When Selena Gomez was spotted at a Los Angeles airport this month wearing a slouchy red hoodie, articles extolling the look popped up everywhere from Us Weekly to Vogue. Why? This wasn’t just any old flight-prime hoodie. It was a sold-out-everywhere, $735 hoodie from Parisian It label Vetements ...
Over the past year, Vetements — which simply means “clothing” in French — has become a favorite among A-listers and fashion folk, with its lead designer, Demna Gvasalia, 34, ascending from unknown to become a celebrity in his own right. His hallmark: a cotton-jersey hoodie in a supersize silhouette intended to drip off the body.

“It’s the sweatshirt of the moment,” says a sales associate at Barneys’ Madison Avenue flagship, which currently offers different versions of the indie brand’s hooded signature in the men’s department, even though it’s technically a women’s piece..

Barneys executive vice president Tom Kalenderian says the hoodies are “selling at the speed of light,” and key pieces from Vetements have sold out at online portals like Net-a-Porter, Totokaelo and Matches Fashion....

Due to limited distribution stateside this season, Barneys is currently the only brick-and-mortar store in New York City with surviving stock. That includes an $845 gray variant that, like Selena’s, features an embroidered riff on the cursive Champion logo, as well as a “Titanic”-themed version ($885), emblazoned with an image of Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet and seen on many an editor, buyer, blogger and stylist during fashion month.
  -RW

3 comments:

  1. Hey, I got some old ratty cargo shorts with bleach stains and acid holes. Salt stained. Any takers? (skid marks are extra).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. How about DNA replicated body juices of your favorite celeb?

      Delete
    2. eeewwwww!!! You guys are gaarross!!!

      Delete