It’s 6:45am and I awake to the high pitch tone of my mobile ringing in my ear. I reluctantly get out of bed, switch on the modem, grab my mac and then return to the warmth under my duvet. Bleary eyed I attempt to navigate my way to the H&M website, filled with excitement. You see, at 7:00am they release their new collaboration with Lanvin and I’m going to grab me a new luscious blazer and shiny pair of shoes. But it didn’t work out like that, instead H&M’s website failed. It teased me to the point of allowing the digital cloth to grace my shopping basket only to reject my registration when I attempted to part with my digital pennies. I was super annoyed at the time but on reflection I calmed down a little, I could make do with out.
I decided to write this post after V, from Grit&Glamour, tweeted that she hopes the new year brings collaborations that aren’t too good to be true. That don’t over promise, then fail when it comes to quality of product. But I take V’s hope one step further and say I’ve had enough already.
Maybe the story above left a bitter taste in my mouth? Maybe you’re right?
But just maybe… these collaborations have run their course and when you take a step back from all the smoke and mirrors you realise that they’re not that great after all. I mean, when I look at the quality of my Commes Des Garçons x H&M shirt, the quality’s no different to H&M’s regular clothes. It’s not better because it bares the Commes Des Garçons name on the label, but I ‘get‘ the allure.
After all, the sharp eyed amongst you will notice that the shirt bares the buttons on the wrong side for a gent. I admit, I was a lot younger and naive when I bought this. I was so enticed by the prospect of owning a ‘piece’ that I sacrificed the fit and bought the only thing they had left to offer; a woman’s shirt. You don’t need a biology degree to realise a woman has breasts and a man does not. So the shirt is only wearable underneath a jumper, yet I’ve clung onto it for the last 4 years!
Why? Because I ‘get‘ the allure.
Those that covet the designer collabs are probably screaming “but you’re paying for the design“. I see what you’re saying, those polka dots are beautifully formed, so beautiful in fact over the last 4 years I’ve yet to find a polka dot that rivals this shirts ‘dottyness’. They’re usually too small or teamed with a collar that’s just not as playful as the one on this shirt. I ‘get‘ the allure.
Regular browsers of my Facebook page may have noticed an article I recently posted about the rise in people in the US buying ‘knock-off’ designer goods. More than half admitted to buying knock-offs because they couldn’t afford the real thing. Is this what it comes down to when investing in these collaborations, price?
Are we sacrificing quality in order to get clothing designed by our favourite fashion houses, even if it goes against everything that fashion house stands for?
Take the latest H&M collaboration with Maison Margiela? The original Margiela brand stood against the brand worship that we see in these collaborations. Margiela himself left the company in 2009 after it had originally been sold to the OTB group in 2002. He was known for shying away from the media spotlight, yet it’s ironic that such a collaboration with all its media whirlwind were to come about in 2012.
Personally, I didn’t care for the menswear from that collection. I’ve realised now that rather than jump on each collection and buy poor quality clothes for inflated prices. It’s much more worthwhile to save up and buy the real thing. I was prepared to splash out almost half the price of a real Lanvin blazer on an inferior one and a pair of shoes. If I had been a bit more patient, done a little research and I could have got the real thing for a similar price in the sale or saved a little more and owned the genuine article. That would have lasted me longer.
The same could be said of the Commes Des Garçons shirt, I probably spent £40 on it. Had I saved the money and not got caught up in the hype, I could have the real thing that fits me properly sitting in my wardrobe, instead of a shirt that’s waiting for me to sprout a pair of breasts…
But… I ‘get ’ the allure.
I’d love to hear about your feelings around designer collaborations. Maybe you love them? Or if you can’t stand them? Let me know what pieces you own and how they work out for you. Anything designer collab related, I’d love to hear about.
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{ 21 comments… read them below or add one }
Oh gosh. I really enjoy the collaborations, especially with Target as its right up the street from me. The quality? Sucky. The fun associated with getting something designed by Marc Jacobs for $40? Super fun! I look at the design and try to decide if the design quality is balanced by the yuck fabric and manufacturing, these are fun things, not investment pieces. I still have, and wear, a Missoni for target piece my mom drove all over LA to find for me. Sometimes it’s the hunt, and the prestige at getting your hands on something coveted, that’s worthwhile. But don’t expect these to be quality pieces. These are fun pieces. That’s all.
Heather Fonseca recently posted..Staying warm wearing burgundy and grey
We don’t have Target over here so I’m not as familiar with them as the H&M or Topshop ones. I do get that they are fun and most people that indulge in them do so because they get a bit of their favourite designers look at high street prices. But I still don’t know if it’s worth it all, especially as most of the stock goes on the first day it’s released. If you want anything decent you usually have to queue up, at least you have had to with the H&M ones.
But as always it’s great to know your thoughts and I value your comments!
Thanks for the mention, Arash.
I’m kind of over the collaborations. Then I took at look at the Prabal Gurung collab that drops at Target on Feb. 10, and I’m kind of believing it could be good. We shall see. While I love the idea of collaborations, I do think (like in Missoni’s case) it really waters down and cheapens the brand. It’s kind of pimping yourself out, and when the collaborations fail, it just adds insult to injury.
The Neiman Marcus x Target collab is at 70% off right now…they can’t GIVE that stuff away, because most of it was so hideous and cheap in real life! They REALLY missed the mark on that one. Too cheap AND too expensive? Yeah, no wonder why it bombed.
You’re right—it really is better to save your money and scour eBay or look for end-of-season sales and get the REAL deal, because it will last longer and look better. I fell for a lot of the collaborations when Target first stated them years ago, and most of what I bought ended up in the donation bin. So now I go and look, and 9 times out of 10, don’t bother. Everything looks better shot and styled professionally; upon close inspection, many pieces look cheap and tacky.
GRIT & GLAMOUR recently posted..Camo + Valentino? Yes!
You’re welcome, I’ll have to check out that collaboration but I’m sure it’ll be all over the blogosphere when it is released. I’m not sure how Target run these collaborations, as I said to Heather we don’t have those stores in the UK. But H&M are very clever in that I don’t think they make huge amounts of money from their collaborations. They limit the stores that actually received them to start with, they then only have so many items and within a week or release you’re lucky to find anything left. For H&M it’s more about the publicity than the numbers I think.
But yeah I found a great site where they only sell second hand designer pieces. The blog I found it on is down at the moment so I’ll check back and put it up once it’s back up.
Well, I must say that I do love the concept of collaborations and certainly don’t think that they all fail on all levels or specifically in quality. Some, yes, but not all. I do think that yes, sometimes collabs are hyped way too much for their own good. But, as a person who works in manufacturing mostly I will say this that just because it costs a much lower price doesn’t exactly mean that the quality is entirely inferior, some items come from the under the same roof, as other high-quality goods being made with a more “budget-friendly” label placed on. I think some of the collabs that I have loved and that doesn’t lose too much of its quality may be non-fashion. Many interior/home/jewellery designer collabs have married both pleasing aesthetics and good quality together well.
Although I wanted to, I wasn’t able to buy from the H&M/Margiela collection. And, as a long time fan of the designer and brand I was excited for it to be honest. Sadly, found nothing that worked for me. The few ladies that I know who did choose a MMM for H&M piece seemed to get lucky, as their items looked good and suited their style. But, I imagine they bought their item with the caution of understanding that, yes it wouldn’t take the place of a “one-of-a-kind” garment costing more than 10x or more.
But, in the end regarding premium fashion designer brands, I’d agree, in general save and splurge once in a while, especially if you’re seeking an item that will in turn have a longer life.
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You’re right higher prices don’t alway mean better quality. But considering on the scale of quality on the high street H&M come towards the bottom end it doesn’t bode well for designer collaborations. If you can get a designer piece in the sale or even a preloved piece it’s definitely going to be of better quality than the H&M counter part.
I’ve never really checked any collaborations in home/interior/jewellery though so it’s good to hear your experience on that.
I’m not such a fan of the collaborations – it’s the quality factor that really bothers me.
Initially, I was excited about the MMM collaboration, but when I got into the store and actually felt the garments, the only thing running through my head was “I am not letting that fabric touch my skin!” (Not to be a snob about it, but spending my day in scratchy polyester isn’t worth the ‘style’ of the clothes.)
You’re right, it’s much better to save up and invest in a piece that will have high quality and great design.
Devon
InformedStyle.com
p.s. Given the ‘trend’ of moobs, that CdG shirt could eventually be an ideal fit for a guy out there…
Devon recently posted..Covet/My Informed Style: Hermès Carré
Ha ha, I was going to make a comment about ‘moobs’ but decided not to. I didn’t actually feel or see any of the MMM stuff in store. My local H&M didn’t get any of it but if their track record with the other collaborations was anything to go by I kinda knew what to expect with it. Thanks for your experiences with it though!
I do not partake in just any collaboration- I try to be selective.
I did purchase a Doo.Ri for Macys Impulse dress last year. The draping is fantastic, it is lined and the design isn’t simply trendy. Plus I only paid $70 for it. Quite the steal for a maxi dress!
But there have been other collaborations that I have opted to pass on. They just don’t feel true to the designer, or the quality isn’t there, or loads of other things.
The key with these collaborations is to be selective and not impulsive. Don’t get caught up in the hype. Choose pieces that work for you and fill a void in your wardrobe. And regardless, don’t let the label make the decision for you!
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The key with these collaborations is to be selective and not impulsive. Don’t get caught up in the hype. Choose pieces that work for you and fill a void in your wardrobe. And regardless, don’t let the label make the decision for you!
I think that’s the key right there, well said!
I have to admit that I’ve been pulled in by the allure far too many times, and even when I manage to score some cute items (Jason Wu for Target for example), the quality is always crap. I’ve been staying away as much as possible lately, and I think the overall market is getting tired of collabs as well. The most recent ones (Margiela, Neiman Marcus/Target) haven’t done nearly as well. I think people are starting to realize that they’re just not worthwhile.
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Yeah I know I am, but I think they may still go strong this year before dropping off. They’ll be some fashion houses that are watching and just won’t want to be a part of it all. But then again, money talks so who knows…
First off, I just want to say that I think this is one of the best articles you’ve written on here. I absolutely loved the opener — your descriptions were amazing and it read like a legit magazine feature. As a writer, I always look at the quality of writing first before the content. But now for the content!
I’m normally not one of those people that will get up at the crack of dawn for anything having to do with clothing (I think I mentioned this on your post about sales). So, I really don’t care about these collaborations to be honest. I’m the type of person who will buy something if I think it’s cute and the quality matches the price, but if I don’t, I won’t. I don’t care who makes it. In fact, the older I get, the less I care about the ‘allure’ of designer brands — even though the older I get, the more money I make and the more likely I am to be able to afford the stuff! Kinda funny. It just all goes back to what’s ‘cool’ and ‘popular.’ And I was always a big nerd.
Thanks
I’m glad you liked that part of the article I wanted to ‘set the scene’ before I just jumped into it.
Ha ha don’t worry I’m a big nerd too. Yeah I think you just become influenced less by marketing tricks that may have swayed you in the past.
Did you get a chance to try on some of the key pieces from the Margiela for H&M collection? The camel coat, fusion blazer, suit blazer, and fused blazer are made of 100% wool. I bought all of them when they went on sale. With the quality, I know I can wear them for a very long time, unlike my Marni for H&M stuff… put the two together and you’ll see a HUGE difference. Same goes with the women’s collections. A lot of the dresses, pants, and, blazers are made of 100% wool as well. Maybe there’s difference between the wool that are used in the original brand, but most of the pieces didn’t look cheap or harsh to the skin (trust me, I tried on everything). Personally, I think H&M did a pretty good job in bringing good designs and quality together this time. Not to mention that they also produced a lot more than previous collaborations, making it more accessible to everyone. If only they had set the prices lower in the beginning….it might not have flopped so bad.
Love this article! I’ve never bought anything from designer collabs, I always say I will and then when I see the clothes in-store, so unimpressed, maybe I’m expecting too much!
Yeah it’s quite easy to get caught up in the marketing machine so we end up really anticipating it which means if it doesn’t meet our huge expectations we become easily disappointed. Thanks for stopping by and commenting, it’s great to see you on the blog
As someone who just can’t justify spending big bucks on designer clothes (and, I will admit, I get a big thrill out of getting a great deal), I like the collaborations that offer clothes a bit more stylish than the mainstream at good prices. However, I will say that a lot of the time people buy things at prices they would never otherwise consider paying *just* because it’s a collaboration. Sorry, Target, I have no interest in a $70 Marc Jacobs scarf that is just a black scarf with Marc Jacobs written on it. I wouldn’t normally pay more than $15 or $20 for a similar scarf, why would I now? Once the Target + Nieman Marcus collection went on sale, I was all over that Tracy Reese blouse! Did I buy it because it’s Tracy Reese? No. I bought it because it’s a great top and it only cost me $25.
Beyond my own personal thoughts on these collaborations, I have to agree with V. These collaborations do cheapen the brand and designer in my mind. The items will never be the full quality of the original designer goods and the designers name will now forever be associated with H&M, Target, etc.
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Yeah that’s the problem sometimes people get whipped up into a frenzy and they buy just so they can say they ‘own a piece by’ rather than questioning whether the purchase is necessary or even good value for money.
It has been great to read this post and Im glad I found it! Im currently starting to write up my Final Major Project for university and this is my chosen topic! Would you mind exchanging email addresses so that I can possibly ask you a few questions for some primary research? I have also created a short survey and I would be really grateful if anyone (females only) could complete this for me.
Looking at the research findings I have already collected, I have found that people seem genuinely fooled in to buying a garment that replicates the designer entirely (i.e. quality), when they are actually getting an overpriced H&M quality garment. I feel that the market has become saturated with this type of collaboration which is a shame because they have potential to have continued success and become something of worth. I also feel that if quality issues do not change, then people will start to notice and the trend may well fade out.
Olivia
Hi Olivia, thanks for commenting.
It’s really interesting to hear about your research on the subject. I guess only time will tell whether or not the trend will slow down.
I’m happy to answer any questions you have for your research you can email me at arash@arashmazinani.com