Fashion and Europe are synonymous with the names of fashion houses such as Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Versace, Dolce & Cabana and many more. A fashion house is created after a great designer Chanel had Gabrielle and Versace had Gianni. A fashion house specializes in the design and sale of high-fashion clothing and accessories. Most have a team of designers working to create masterpiece that were imagine by the creative directors like Alessandro Michele and Karl Lagerfeld. There are American fashion houses also like Michael Kors and Ralph Lauren and British ones like Alexander McQueen. While not all them have hefty price tags, they do offer great fashion, which is one reasons why people flock to designers.
The true different between fashion houses is their age. Older fashion houses like Chanel trace their roots to Gabrielle’s Hat store in 1910. Yet despite their each house has a similar message.
Whether I was in Florence or in Rome, I received the same response from every sale associate about what set their brand apart from others.
Viktoria and the Gucci flag-store in Florence stated that Gucci provide unique luxury.
Camilla at Prada stated the Luxury of Prada was unparallel to others.
Marie at Versace in Rome said that Versace brings luxury, class and style into every wardrobe.
It seems that each fashion houses believes or even knows what their shopper desire.
But what does luxury mean? Is it the price tag or the privilege of owning one of their pieces?
According to the Webster Dictionary, Luxury refers to something adding to pleasure or comfort but not necessary. We can all agree that Gucci Handbags and Versace sunglasses are opulent and even unnecessary to our daily lives even if we are enamored by them.
Luxury in fashion means the ability to not only have the unattainable but to also have comfort. Luxury is also cultural meaning that each culture has a different connotation to the word that helps items sell just as well.
Women in Florence have a unique and keen sense of style where not only dark colors are the focal point but so is leather and sleekness. There were times in Florence where I sought to throw off my Americanism by looking Italian. I wore dark pants, leather flats and dark shirt quarter sleeved top and a scarf with of course my most fashionable bag. My outfit didn’t only get me respect by Italians meaning they said permiso to me as they passed or even let me pass them in the store with a prego but also provided me with a sense of safety as a crossed large tourist area. I was invisible to the Gypses and men with bracelets even though my Italian is more Spanish with a few Italian phrases sprinkled. It is the reason why Florentine women walked with ease, this is their culture and their world in a sense every sense their identity.
In America, fashion has another element. There is a crossroad where fashion and celebrity meet and as people we want to imitate them. The concept stems from the notion that the wealthy were celebrities and had the best and if you wanted the best than you had the same items. The wealthy and celebrity would have things made and tailor for them because mass production and factory-made items were for regular people in a sense.
Well, that’s until companies that we call fashion house started to appeal to the masses and become affordable and in Vogue, both literally in Vogue magazine and in style.
Scholars debate that as societies become more materialistic in nature so did the price of goods which became of the division among socio-economical classes.
Fashion is merely a product of social demands the demands of status and wealth.
While traveling through Florence and Rome, it is easy to see how each window of every designer store is similar. The name is lit up by lights or made of shiny metal whether it be silver or gold. Each window shoes richly dress mannequins decked out in the brands designs. In stores like Gucci and Versace the same 300 euro can get you a scarf. Maybe Italian Fashion houses seek an average buying in price?
Fashion brands sell you on a lifestyle and are imbedded into popular culture. Fashion help us identify ourselves in contrast with others and provided us with a cultural identity. We wear what we have been taught in cultural acceptable. Brand fashion helps us navigate all these factors and simplify them into a single interpretation in the name of beauty and aesthesis. Fashion is a multi-billion industry driven by consumers who value luxury, style and class but most importantly see the worth in beauty and aesthetic whether that be a three-piece suit or a torn-up t-shirt.
Fashion is truly society on a clothes rack.