Kasper

57 minutes ago, CARLOOA said:

Heh, we're still buying. Let's think about this, if anyone was in Errolson's position, with a child, model gf, etc. would you charge less than what the market would bear? I'm not sure anyone would, Errolson, like the majority of folks is trying to live his best life—if we don't like it, we should vote with abstaining from voting with our wallets and let the stock sit. Otherwise, continue copping and support price creep and the advancement and development of Acronym.

I think the issue is that I don't think the market can bear those prices over the long-term. Maintaining this kind of brand desirability over the medium / long-term is extremely hard and you can only manage it by insuring you maintain a large number of brand supporters. I think the issue with the recent price hikes is that no one in their right mind can pay 1,200 EUR for pants so pieces tend to be bought more and more by rich assholes with fuck-you money who are buying it cause it's the cool thing of the moment and aren't likely to stay invested in the brand long-term. . 

I think this is going to have an impact of the image of the brand. Up until about 1-2 years ago, whenever I saw someone in ACR (which didn't happen often), they always seemed to dressed so well and be people I could hang out with, but nowadays, it seems ACR has become one of key element of the princeling fucbois uniform along with Off-White and Vetements and I cringe most of the time I see people wearing it (I also live in fucbois central so they are very visible). These people have no taste and are only buying what's cool to show off and as they move on from streetwear, I am not sure you will see a new generation emerge willing to buy ACR. As a result, the coolness factor of the brand has gone down quite a bit for me and there are alternatives.

I got some p10S from the SS16 drop, just checked the receipt and they were 485 EUR. Now at ~1,200 EUR, it's an almost 3x markup over just 2 years. Are you fucking kidding me!!! Pricing is so out of sync with value, I just cannot even remotely justify looking at ACR now. Goodbye, it's been fun while it lasted, but there's just no way...  

On the price hike, while I don't doubt that input prices have gone up faster than inflation, they haven't gone up nowhere near enough to justify the recent season price hikes. Essentially, E looked at the market and saw that a lot of people were willing to pay rape price and decided that rather than giving all of these profit to resellers, he rather have it himself. That's it. Now, there's a bunch of things he could do to keep price more affordable (ie. produce more), but he clearly decided that he'd rather have the hype and maximize profit per unit rather than total profit. For exemple, there's no reason why he couldn't reopen subnet and allow customers to pre-order items ahead of general release. In this way, he takes zero production risk and doesn't need a dollar of investment in working cap since you pay upfront and could easily produce and ship items as they are produced. Frankly, I'm sure 99% of ACRNM fans would be willing to order through such a system, even if it meant waiting a couple months to get stuff. 

As with many others, while I love ACRNM, I just don't feel like I can justify the price and anyway, I am really turned off by the whole buying experience and feel taken for granted as a huge fan of the brand and customer. What fucking brand expects you to spend you life checking their website in case some product is suddenly released without warning or will sell out in 15 sec. Especially as the line as gotten more "out there" recently (as much as I love some of the products conceptually, wearing ninja pants is cosplaying), I feel less and less interest and have instead shifted to other brands. 

When you run a fashion business, you have to strike a balance between pleasing your long-term supporters / fans (which generate 95% of the noise around the brand) and the people that actually generate most of your profits (ie. older, richer people that can walk into Barney's and buy anything on a SA rec). I specifically feel Veilance has done a really good job of creating a strong following while also being sold to a wider audience. 

7 hours ago, s2ledesm said:

@Toilettebun thanks I'm aware but I won't be able to cop on drop day, hence I'm looking for an assist on these

So just to be clear, you are asking strangers on the internet to help you cop something that's going to be insanely hard to get and will sell out in seconds and you want them to provide it to you at cost while they could otherwise flip it the day of for 2x+???

1 hour ago, llobey said:

check again

Lol we definitely live in the world of alternative truth...

seriously don't know what your problem is, you're an idiot if you believe that picture is of Toronto

1 hour ago, llobey said:

no

Thanks for coming back 3 years later, but this is the Wrigley Building on Michigan avenue which last I checked is in Chicago

2 hours ago, caprisonne said:

Regarding international shipping to the US and customs, how do you guys declare the value of the package and do you declare it as a gift or other? 

The US limit is very high ($800) so anything under will not be assessed duty or taxes. So as long as the package is under $800, i would be honest, there's no downside and it allow you to properly insure the package. 

3 hours ago, vir2L said:

Did you ever get invoiced by UPS for the j28/p25h? Last time I bought from Acronym and this happened, UPS sent me a letter to collect unpaid duties.

Sorry, I know this wasn't directed to me, but very surprised you got an invoice from UPS. Where are you located? My understanding from having quite a few issues with them and spending a lot of time with customer service is that they won't deliver anything unless duties have been prepaid on the phone / online or someone gives them a check when they drop off the package. Fedex does invoicing post delivery 100% of the time though. 

18 hours ago, junkie_dolphin said:

What's Errolson's involvement with Laminar at this point? He never talks about it in interviews...

I don't know THB. Herno keeps on mostly releasing the same pieces year that were originally designed by Errolson (the 3-1 parka & jacket haven't changed in at least 4 years) but there's no mention of his involvement on the Herno website (it actually says Laminar is a collabo between Herno and Gore). A quick Google search seem to indicate that the last mention of Errolson is a tweet from him talking about SS13 and nothing since so I think it's a good assumption to assume he is not involved anymore, but that some of his designs live on.

On 2018-02-03 at 7:21 AM, Brainboy said:

Anyone knows how Herno Laminar stuff fits compared to Veilance or Acronym? Is size 48 too large if I wear S or XS? 

I think 48 would be about right. The Laminar outerwear is cut ridiculously tight in the shoulder so most people have to size up because of that. I am a 48/50 but consistently wear M in veilance and ACR and my Laminar 3-1 parka is a 52. I could sorta fit in the 50, but the shoulders were super tight and I wouldn’t have been able to wear any substantial layer underneath. FYI I don’t really have broad shoulder so I think it’s an issue for everyone.

It is by far my favourite jacket btw, really underrated IMO as you get the E’s design as well as Herno’s quality at a very attractive price point 

1 hour ago, CHINESEGOLD said:

City has been dead since Inventory left. Only places of note are Neighbour, Gravity Pope (pretty eh but they have a good shoe selection) and Stranger Showroom (but this is essentially just Japanese stuff that dudes are flipping from y!jp)

Haven, Roden Gray, Feuille and \017 are also worth mentioning 

On 1/19/2018 at 2:19 AM, suprastar said:

Guys need some advice.

Doing a trip to Vancouver/Seattle/Portland in late February and planning to go up to Whistler, as well as some hiking here and there.

Was eyeing the Hoka One One Ultra Tor Hi boots, but is it really necessary to have waterproof boots? Don't want to spend that much for only a couple of weeks wear, especially since I live in warmer climates usually..

Would I be able to get away with my Red Wing leather lace up boots ?

In the summer (or late spring / early fall), you'd be fine, but winter is extremely wet so trails will be beyond muddy and you'll hit some snow if you do any serious hikes so I would think you'd do a lot better with proper waterproofed boots. 

On 12/31/2017 at 10:17 AM, Endless said:

There isn’t really a discount tho, is it? Correct me if I’m wrong here but the thought is for your guys to pay your own customs and the total price ending up the same as when you buy from American retailers, isn’t it? In the end you might be able to save some money by complaining with the customs service, eventually getting a partial refund, but with all that hassle and the longer shipping shipping times (+ higher shipping fees compared to domestic orders I assume?) I still don’t get why you’re doing it. :/

On ACR specifically, there usually is a bit of a discount (EU price ex VAT vs. US price) on the headline price and then you save the sales tax, but most ACR products tend to be $800+ so you end up dealing with duties. Obviously some drops are ACRNM.com only. 

For pretty much every thing else though, it's pretty much always cheaper as an American to buy from EU based retailers. Products are typically priced in EUR (incl. VAT) at the same level as they are in the US (pre-tax). VAT is around 20% and US sales tax are around 7-8%. And the USD is super strong at the moment (particularly vs. the pound. So as long as you buy items that are priced below $800, you can expect savings in the range of 30-40% on a full price item from a EU based store vs. buying locally. This dynamic is part of the reason why European online stores have benefited from much stronger growth and are the dominant players right now (in the luxury sector). 

16 hours ago, BRICK DOM said:

 

I've got the first iteration of these and they are in no way suitable for rain or snow lol. Dunno where you got that idea.

They're stretchy and comfy and I'd only ever wear them in dry conditions. 

It's kinda weird to design a boot that looks this rugged and not being able to handle the conditions it looks like it's designed for. 

Adidas X White Mountaineering. Really interested by these, although I am a bit skeptical of of the ability of primeknit to properly insulate / protect against cold, snow & rain. Anyone has handled these?

Got an iPhone X last Friday and can happily report that it still fits into the cell phone pocket on ACR pants. However, because it is taller than the previous "regular" iPhones, the top of the phone does come pretty close to the top and as a result, it pushes open the outer fabric at the top, making the opening and therefore the pocket more noticeable. Wish the pocket was a half inch deeper, but otherwise happy that it still fits. 

2 hours ago, Inkinsurgent said:

I wonder how the bird (or any company really) deals with this on a corporate level. Do they investigate to prove it came from the same factory? do they hit them with a cease and desist but stay with the factory or move to a new factory altogether? Maybe the cost of dealing with it is higher than the cost of whatever problem the existence of fakes introduces and they don't bother dealing with it at all? It makes me curious as hell.

2 of my good friends (both IP lawyers) worked in LVMH legal department so we talked about this quite a bit. Essentially, the common thinking is the best way to combat counterfeiting is to focus effort on the selling channels (ie. eBay, Taobao, etc) rather than on the the counterfeiters themselves. As long as China continues to turn a blind eye to massive IP fraud and counterfeiting, you have to assume that fakes will be produced one way or another so it's a lot more effective trying to prevent these fakes being imported / sold. So LVMH has an army of (mostly intern) lawyers combing the web and taking down listing of fakes, getting fakes sellers banned, etc. It's time consuming and not terribly efficient, but it's the best that can be done in today's environment.

It's not like no one knows the trade offs of producing in China; you'll get thing done much more efficiently and cheaply, but at the serious risk of losing your IP / manufacturing expertise, trade secrets, etc. Now that Arc'Teryx has moved a lot of production to China, it's unfortunately inevitable that fakes are starting to appear. 

On 9/30/2017 at 7:58 AM, branespload said:

polytope was actually planned for S17, i believe it's the same nyco as the front part of the component shirt, but yeah super minimal (i posted a press release pic of it some pages back from that onei nterview with taka). it had a different name by fw17 but doesnt matter cuz both got scrapped lol

I picked one up as well from the factory store earlier this summer and the SA told me the same thing (ie. the were samples of something that never got made). To be honest, I'm not sure why they pulled the plug, it has become one of my favorite shirt and is really awesome

1 hour ago, cornerska said:

Could anyone comment on the current state of Isaora's quality? I'm interested in a few of their items, but I recall in the past a lot of people were saying that they had serious issues with their clothing.

It's very good for the price point. That being said, isaora outerwear is 50-70% cheaper than say veilance or ACR so obviously the quality won't be anywhere close. Honestly, I think Isaora make sense for someone on a budget or getting into tech wear, but personally, the difference in quality is too big to what I am used to so I'd rather save and buy pieces I love

I really like seeing E cancelling bot orders and it looks like taking steps to prevent re sellers from making a quick buck. I'll admit that there wasn't really anything I really wanted this drop, not to mention that I find the price hike to be a little hard to swallow, but I think small steps like these goes a long way of maintaining brand loyalty. It's also clear that prices are still below what the market will pay so it's hard to me to really get angry at E for being successful. 

I really like this Civilized blazer, been thinking about buying it for work so get it first and tell me how it is

I've actually decided to "upgrade" my underwear over the last year so I have embarked on a quest to find the best one. Here's my thoughts:

Zimmerli: quite frankly a step above everything, price included. not sure that you can justify paying $80+ for a pair of boxer though, regardless of how awesome they are

Icebreaker merino: as mentioned above, they are awesome. also fairly easy to grab on sale. I hate branding on the elastic band so that annoys me. 

Sunspel: 100% cotton is what feels the most comfortable to me (all down to preference of course). the drawback of 100% cotton is that the trunks tend to stretch a fair bit, creating an unflattering, granpa look due to the band at the bottom not stretching as much and the trunk "bunching". Of course not an issue with their stretch cotton, but offerings are limited

Rapha (essential & merino): really awesome and probably the best designed. on the pricey side and perhaps a little longer than I normally prefer though

Paul Smith: Got some as a gift and wasn't expecting much, but I've come to really appreciate them. 100% cotton with a stretch and very comfy. 

On 7/21/2017 at 10:03 PM, shifty said:

Veilance is the kind of brand that isn't daunting in a fashion sense and can appeal to the average person as just nice minimal design, but people who are in the know can appreciate it for everything else that the brand has to offer as far as aesthetics and detailing. I've seen more veilance on uncool dads wearing square toed loafers than I've seen elsewhere, and while thats not the same audience that veilance has really found a niche with (like people here), I don't feel like it takes away anything from it.

Completely agree. I have a few finance bros who own veilance jackets and they don't really know much about the brand, other than what the Barney's SA told them. I think for all of these guys, they were looking for a clean, warm jacket that could be used to the office (ie. something that wasn't Moncler or Canada Goose) and veilance appealed to them. 

WTS

Brand new, only tried on P24-S size Large $520 shipped to North America. Can ship locally for Canadian to avoid tax / duties. 

14 hours ago, branespload said:

you mean SS17? the apparat uses the same 70/30 cotton/nylon or 'brushed poplin' and has a hidden cargo pocket, but also visible back pockets. maybe youd like that?

also, i kinda thought i wouldnt like the lack of back pocket. but on my apparat short, i dont really mind. it's my fav short atm

They are from FW17 (coming season), salesperson confirmed and the fabric has a much heavier weight than the SS17 Align. 

Maybe I could learn to love the back, don't know that I need the temptation though