i want my luxuries to be questionable & inaccessible

luxury needs to return to shameless extravagance and opulence

Instead of operating on the poor quality, easy to consume, impossible to sustain fast fashion model, luxury brands need to go back to their roots.

The purpose of luxury isn’t to fulfill a need, but to feed indulgence.

Quite a few mainstream luxury fashion brands seem to have forgotten that.

It’s no secret that mainstay brands such as Chanel have participated in blatant price gouging, while also refusing to uphold quality standards of their products, showing us that consumers are literally only paying for the name.

Due to the economic climate, inhumane policies and rampant capitalism, we are living an era where the average person is likely living paycheque to paycheque. Basic needs such as groceries are often seen as luxuries—but necessities are not meant to be in the same Venn diagram as legitimate extravagance.

One of the key features of luxury classification is exclusivity. One of the easiest ways to create this sense of being part of the few that can get an item is pricing. However, this should not be considered the solitary marker for a luxury item. The expectation should be, that prohibitive pricing has been paired with high quality product. There are some brands that have taken pride in their offerings, and have aligned with quality. Others, however, have decided to follow the fast fashion model, to the detriment of everyone involved.   

If brands want us to take them as seriously as their pricing forces us to, they must go back to why we want luxury goods to begin with. Luxuries are meant to be fun. To be frivolous! There is no fun nor any frivolity in a poorly stitched handbag that cost $3500 at minimum and was surely made in a sweatshop for under $100.

Part of the logic behind paying more for a luxury item is that you can--or at the very least, you want to. It’s a status symbol. The illusion of status is why we see so many people going broke living above their means.

Many designer brands offer lifestyle products outside of clothing, accessories, beauty. If you smoke, it’s in your best interests to get an ashtray. The luxury in getting one by Chrome Hearts, is that you don’t need a $2815 ashtray. It’s just very nice to have. And of course, you wouldn’t have something as extravagant as a Chrome Hearts ashtray if you couldn’t afford it, right?

Of course, people who purchase items like the CH ashtray range from the haves, the have-nots, to the have-somes. That’s the nature of luxury goods that are upscaled “practical” items. A purse or a watch, for example, are accessories that have utility. There is justification in getting the luxury version of certain things. Quality, exclusivity, design, brand loyalty, brand visibility etc.

But I think that to truly honor the essence of luxury, brands need to think bigger.

If luxury pillars want their true target audience to revel in Regan era hyper-capitalism, they should provide legitimate fodder.

What better way to illustrate hyper-capitalism than with Patrick Bateman?

Rather than simply providing a pricier option to items one would inevitably purchase, offer me something I don’t need. Offer me something so ludicrous, so unserious that I can barely justify having it for the sake of having it.

A brand that has excelled at this very recently is Celine. In June of this year, they announced their pilates collection. Along with activewear, a cork yoga mat and brick, a 4KG kettlebell in smooth calfskin and steel (my favourite in this collection) and of course, the infamous PILATES REFORMER IN WOOD AND TRIUMPHE CANVAS.

After a resurgence in popularity as a highlight of That Girl’s routine, quite a few of us learned that reformer Pilates classes can be quite expensive. Buying a machine for your home can be impractical unless you’re an instructor or have otherwise developed a level of expertise, and this is before considering how much room is needed to use it.

Causing a lot of the internet to ask “why” Celine decided to sell a pilates reformer in the first place. The answer lies within the Triumphe canvas: there is no reason, it simply is.

When you look at the reformer on the Celine website, there is no price listed, and no option to add to cart. The only way to order is by phone. A power move.

Ironically enough, googling “Celine pilates collection” gets you a result that exposes the price…& apparently I visit this link often. Oof.

Enter my current personal favourite example of unabashed luxury: the Rick Owens fog machine. As a creative, I can come up with three reasons why I would want a fog machine (music video, photoshoot, a party), for the first two reasons, fog could be added in post, and for all three, my first thought would be to take out a rental.

In her opulent glory…

But then Rick Owens presents the FW22 STROBE HANDHELD FOG MACHINE GOLD for 5250 USD, taxes and fees included. There is absolutely no reason to purchase this, especially in comparison to the rest of the offerings from the brand—my money could be better spent elsewhere on the site. This would be nothing more than a conversation piece in my possession.

And that is exactly why it is tantamount luxury. There is no “I needed one anyway,”.

A very expensive item masquerading as a whim, existing as a trifle. A purchase like this is pure Id decision making; feeding the want.✪

A final, bonus example is a book I will be reading in the future. The Luxury Strategy, is a guide that shows the reader the ins and outs of luxury business and how brands market their grift (my words, not theirs). It’s $68 at all retailers, only has a hardcover edition (no digital either) and isn’t available at the public library. I’m hoping to find a second hand copy online (I’ll sooner find a FENTY pearls body chain) but will eventually just buy it new so I can read and discuss it here.