subject: Did Mr. Armani Actually Design The Shirt You Bought Today? [print this page]
When we buy designer clothing, we are often paying for the name, quality, and the cutting-edge style. Today, most famous designers offer many lines of clothing to fit almost any budget. But have you ever found yourself wondering how famous designers can design and sell certain lines of clothing for such low prices when there's such high demand for their extremely expensive lines? Well, the answer is this: The clothes in those lines that you are buying for such a low price weren't actually DESIGNED by that famous designer at all!
What happens in the fashion industry today is that many clothing manufacturers sign agreements with top names in the fashion design world, such as Armani, Chanel, or Tommy Hilfiger. These designers agree to let their name be used as the label for the clothing produced by the company in exchange for some of the profits the designer clothing brings in. This allows both the designers and the companies to make more money and allows consumers to afford designer brand name clothing.
This does not mean that the designer clothing you purchase from department stores or discount retailers is a knock-off. It's a legitimate use of the designer's name according to a legal agreement. The designer has approved the use of their name in association with the clothing, which they would not do if they believed that the clothes were ugly or bad quality. What well-known designer would want to be associated with bad clothing? It would ruin their reputation.
To further ensure the quality of the clothing associated with their name, many designers will place restrictions on the styles of clothing produced and sold. Often, the clothing must be of a particular level of quality or based on styles produced by the designer. Some designers even go so far as to require that the clothing manufacturers submit all designs to them for approval. These designers want the cost of the clothing to be cheap, not the quality or design.
If you purchase cheap designer clothing from an online store or at your local mall, you shouldn't be disappointed that you aren't wearing something the designer themselves personally designed. In order to afford clothing that exclusive, you would need to have millions of dollars in cash laying around, which most people just don't have. Instead, congratulate yourself. It means that you have gotten yourself a fabulously stylish wardrobe without breaking the bank!
