the connotations of labels/brands

[Guest jmatsu]

i know it sounds rather dumb, but am i the only individual who refuses to purchase and wear (and to a point despises) certain labels just because the label itself has imagery or connotations that i find subpar or unsavvy(or other impractiacal or personal reasoning)? i'm not talking about political ramifications of i.e. sweatshops, but of a label's general image.

for example i dislike takeo kikuchi because his house's salaryman consumers.

versace in japan seems so degenerate.

lrg and the new generation of streetwear seems so contrived and shallow.

comme des garcons because of all the old people in aoyama who frequent the shop.

girbaud/fcuk/diesel seem euro-trash to me.

all of these brands have had and do have some great pieces though.

should we as consumers buy into a brands image/lifestyle concept, or cherry pick various pieces without actual brand discriminations? i used to do the later, but as of late the conotations have hindered this garment shopping method.

in your immediate environment, do certain labels carry certain negative connotations? personal or factual, i would love to hear about them. thanks.

[mr fluffernutter]

I am sort of that way, but perhaps to a lesser extent. I don't mind old people... or shallowness.

[fade to black2]

yeah i'd say there's some labels i'd put into this category...

- Comme des Garcons/Undercover because of the HK fashion beasts who drool over the stuff...not to mention the designs and the garments themselves don't do much for me. (Junya Watanabe is exempt from this)

- Anything from Urban Outfitters besides the belts

- and as you mentioned, all those euro denim brands like fcuk, diesel, and what not

and i feel kinda averse to buying from H&M/Zara/Express...not so much for the culture that surrounds it, but the quality kinda turns me off. I'm especially wary of the designer/H&M collabs. I'd rather buy less often and get a few well made clothes rather than keep reloading for a fashion fix from high street brands.

[Guest jmatsu]

yeah i'd say there's some labels i'd put into this category...

- Comme des Garcons/Undercover because of the HK fashion beasts who drool over the stuff...not to mention the designs and the garments themselves don't do much for me. (Junya Watanabe is exempt from this)

- Anything from Urban Outfitters besides the belts

- and as you mentioned, all those euro denim brands like fcuk, diesel, and what not

and i feel kinda averse to buying from H&M/Zara/Express...not so much for the culture that surrounds it, but the quality kinda turns me off. I'm especially wary of the designer/H&M collabs. I'd rather buy less often and get a few well made clothes rather than keep reloading for a fashion fix from high street brands.

i totally feel you. it's the same way in japan. people think it's so cutting edge or so avant garde to wear comme des garcons and undercover. my mother owns shit from comme des garcons! and so do some of her neighbors. i do appreciate the tricot line because of the heritage factor though. what's considered deadly wack in hk now?

quality not quantity. very true. i am trying desperately to downsize on denim and shoes.

[fade to black2]

man i don't even know what's considered wack in HK, it seems the kids there will wear ANYTHING these days...just get a big name trend magazine like Milk to co-sign it and you will have at least SOMEONE wearing it.

CdG was good, but now most of the focus has turned to the pointless logo/print t-shirts as far as consumers go, and from a design perspective it's all become very gimmicky and costume-y. I think of the Japanese trio from the 80s, Yohji is the only one who has managed to stay fresh and relevant.

Undercover is overpriced, not very innovative (well maybe the womenswear...), and as someone on SZ put it, 'trendy and juvenile.' People line up for the collabs and the t-shirts though.

[Servo2000]

Undercover is the BAPE of the all-black-all-the-time labels.

[fade to black2]

that;s a pretty good analogy.

[Guest jmatsu]

man i don't even know what's considered wack in HK, it seems the kids there will wear ANYTHING these days...just get a big name trend magazine like Milk to co-sign it and you will have at least SOMEONE wearing it.

CdG was good, but now most of the focus has turned to the pointless logo/print t-shirts as far as consumers go, and from a design perspective it's all become very gimmicky and costume-y. I think of the Japanese trio from the 80s, Yohji is the only one who has managed to stay fresh and relevant.

Undercover is overpriced, not very innovative (well maybe the womenswear...), and as someone on SZ put it, 'trendy and juvenile.' People line up for the collabs and the t-shirts though.

i fucking loathe the "play" series. the connotations to me are: a lesser/cheap line that is produced for the masses.

i did like jun takahashi's evolution, but don't think that he transcends a "punkrock" lifestyle in the way that vivienne westwood (one of his heroes, supposedly) was able too.

anyway is there any personal factors that hinder you from biting the bullet and buying certain labels? for instance i don't own any h&m/don't know if i would buy any, but a friend of mine bought that viktor and rolf trench which i thought was kind of nice.

even if a certain piece from a label i generally dislike is immaculate, i still can't touch it. is this attitude insane?

[insidertrading]

Undercover is the BAPE of the all-black-all-the-time labels.

nuttin' wrong with that.

as for jmatsu's original point, almost any euro 'trend' label and/or diffusion labels (d&g, versace, armani jeans, prada sport, moschino, etc etc)... primarily due to the obvious 'metrosexual' implications, that of which i try to stay far far far away from.

[insidertrading]

man i don't even know what's considered wack in HK, it seems the kids there will wear ANYTHING these days...just get a big name trend magazine like Milk to co-sign it and you will have at least SOMEONE wearing it.

i was walking down causeway a couple weeks back wearing my supreme x nbhd stadium jacket when i spotted some overweight kid across the street wit the exact same jacket; only this guy paired his with the supreme x nbhd 'box' tee, nbhd ripper jeans and from what i could tell the adidas x nbhd superstars (yeah i tend to notice these things)... near made me want to take my own off.

hong kong is the product of great marketing.

[haptronic]

i tend to avoid all the duty free brands..or they turn me off...prada gucci shit even dior....if it has a shop in the departures area at an international airport then it is past it's use by date...

big logos on sunglasses...no thanks...

[Guest jmatsu]

i was walking down causeway a couple weeks back wearing my supreme x nbhd stadium jacket when i spotted some overweight kid across the street wit the exact same jacket; only this guy paired his with the supreme x nbhd 'box' tee, nbhd ripper jeans and from what i could tell the adidas x nbhd superstars (yeah i tend to notice these things)... near made me want to take my own off.

hong kong is the product of great marketing.

this is sooo funny, because it's so typical. this happens too me alot. don't take your shit off. just fucking punch that dude in the face then throw his shit into the harbor.

[insidertrading]

this is sooo funny, because it's so typical. this happens too me alot. don't take your shit off. just fucking punch that dude in the face then throw his shit into the harbor.

or steal it... throwing it into the harbor would be such a waste of some good money pieces. heh.

[Guest jmatsu]

obviously i was kidding, but this is the kind of shit that ruined neighborhood for me.

i have recently develped sort of an aversion to any brand on the hypebeast/or blogs of the like. it's ridiculous. i've seen freshness put up dh sneakers and hype put up the entire cdg pour homme line. why this sudden movement into nonstreet territory?

it's not necessarily a bad thing (i don't like it), but why the sudden interest??

[fade to black2]

i was walking down causeway a couple weeks back wearing my supreme x nbhd stadium jacket when i spotted some overweight kid across the street wit the exact same jacket; only this guy paired his with the supreme x nbhd 'box' tee, nbhd ripper jeans and from what i could tell the adidas x nbhd superstars (yeah i tend to notice these things)... near made me want to take my own off.

hong kong is the product of great marketing.

the thing is...if someone can pull that shit off with flair, it's cool. Like you for example, you wear a lot of stuff that i normally wouldn't consider my style, a lot of street stuff...but i think you pull it off.

Yet in HK it's ALWAYS those slob-looking, nerdy ass moneyed motherfuckers who wear all the $$$ shit. I remember bein at Lane Crawford in Times Square, some kid was wearing a Hussein Chalayan 'shadow' collar white shirt tucked into Blue whiskered diors, red dior suspenders and gold DH sneakers. Turns out he was shopping with his (unhappy looking) gold digger girlfriend who looked cheap as shit and his mother.

I look at people like that, look at myself, chuckle and think "it could always be worse, Matt, it could always be worse..." pop the collar of my v-neck and stroll on

[onemancult]

i think that it is only natural, as conscious consumers, to be averse to purchasing clothes from certain brands based on the image the brand presents and the image the clothes present when they're on your back.

on the flip side of things you won't touch because of the socio-cultural implications, what are things that you do buy because of the socio-cultural implications?

[fade to black2]

on the flip side of things you won't touch because of the socio-cultural implications, what are things that you do buy because of the socio-cultural implications?

well...i dunno if this counts. but part of the reason i like Yohji and 45 RPM so much is not just because they drop heat rocks, but also the fact that they manage to consistently go under the radar...esp. Yohji, i know he gets props for his womenswear but i don't really hear much praise for his menswear...he is influential in terms of his proportions, and later on you might see some euro designer do a similar thing and get lauded for it yet yohji keeps doin his thing. i remeember buying some slouchy, over long drape t-shirts in ss 04...then rick owens comes out with the exact same thing a year or two later and everyone gets on it.

[fixoid]

I loathe all the pernicious deceptions.

oh wait, my diors are too baggy.

[nairb49]

Funny, I used to think the exact same way about alot of labels. These days I've been making an effort NOT to regard the labels (failing miserably at the moment....) and just buy what I think will look good.

It'll take a while before I can pick up a jacket from Energie or D&G and really think I can incorporate it in my aesthetic. Too many connotations will start flowing through my thoughts, as elitist and inappropriate as they may be.

I've always liked labels that didn't show off themselves, and I guess the difference for me is living where I do as opposed to you guys in NY/HK etc where the number of people who will recognize Undercover/45rpm etc. pieces will probably outnumber the ones in my city 100:1.

And i'm supposed to be in the fashion mecca of canada. go figure.

[Miles]

Agreed with most of what's been said above (sans CdG). In fact, the number of shops I frequent has dwindled in the past 2-3 years to the point that I don't even see Diesel, Prada, Gucci, etc.

If there's one brand that sticks out to me that hasn't been mentioned it's probably Trovata. There's been times when I've seen pieces that, at first glance, seem interesting. Then when I realize it's Trovata, I see it as a gaudy interpretation of Paul Smith (i.e., the secret details).

[down4nyhc]

i feel like the oposite of this is people who buy stuff because of a certain image a certain company wants to project to the general public. I see a lot of people buying brands because they are being mentioned in the media or use stupid word of mouth marketing. The stupidest thing I have ever heard is that Seven Jeans make your ass look good. Yet my fellow coworkers push this little lie onto customers all day.