Welp, this post was supposed to go up on Friday, but life got in the way.  I did manage to post my Fashion Friday video to Instagram.  You can check it out here.

Today I want to chat about exclusivity in the world of fashion.

Exclusivity has long been fashion’s pièce de résistance.

Fashion makes us feel special.  Important.  Elevated.  So when something is scare – a rarity – on top of making us feel special, its stock goes up exponentially.  A fashion world double whammie.  This is the very definition of luxury fashion.

I recently read a fascinating article that broke down the conundrum of luxury fashion.  Conundrum, you ask?  Why, yes.  Think about it.  How can luxury fashion truly be exclusive if they are moving MILLIONS of units?

Have you ever seen a blogger with double “G” Gucci belt?  How about a Louis Vuitton tote?  Of course you have.  While those are pieces of luxury fashion, they are anything but exclusive.  They’re downright ubiquitous.

There’s a reason luxury brands have branched out into beauty and accessories.  The pricepoints are lower but the association to that world of exclusivity is still there (a Chanel lipstick versus a Chanel bag).

The article brings up an interesting point about the perceived scarcity of supply in luxury fashion.  We are made to think that there is a very limited number of these special pieces.  And that is partly true.  But you have to look at the whole picture.

Rolex, for example, has a very tight control over how many entry-level models it will sell – their cheapest offering.  They don’t want too many getting out into the market. But they have zero cap on the amount of high-end, $500,000 models they’ll sell.

This goes back to the Gucci belt example.  While it is still a very expensive belt, it’s one of Gucci’s cheaper offerings.  Anyone who tried to buy one during the height of their popularity knows how impossible it was to get your hands on one.  They were sold out everywhere because the supply was tightly capped.  This created a frenzy and a perception that the belts were “exclusive”.

Luxury fashion satiates a deep psychological need.  I may not be an it-girl, a socialite or a jetsetter, but if I own a Chanel bag, maybe, just maybe, I’ll feel like one enough to transcend my own reality.

So I ask you, dear readers…

When it comes to fashion, is it “I have, therefore I am?”

You know I believe in the transformative power of fashion.  I do think fashion can transcend reality and transport us to a different place.  Even if that place is a state of mind.

But if we unpack this notion a bit more, the “I have, therefore I am” mentality speaks to a need to fit in, rather than stand out.  The opposite of exclusivity.

The response I got to my Fashion Friday Instagram video was fascinating.  A lot of people spoke about knowing others who buy luxury just so other people will think they’re “rich”.  A real-life keeping up with the Joneses.

To take this a bit further, I think a lot of people have trouble finding their signature style.  So they go after what they “think” they should wear so others perceive them as important.

As always, I encourage you to invest in pieces that pull at your heartstrings.  Style is intrinsic; it’s what comes out of you naturally.  It is a not a logo or a status symbol.

I’d love to hear what you think of luxury fashion.  What are your experiences?  And is it really, “I have, therefore I am?”