Adam Davidson did an excellent and tragic NPR story a decade ago about an NYC bespoke tailor who couldn't afford to make himself a suit, and refused to buy off the rack...
Great Sletter! I think the market is in a weird space at the moment where the middle has been progressively hollowed out and we're left with ever escalating-price luxury goods (with shoddier quality in a lot of cases) and hyper-fast fashion. A lot of the middle space where department stores sat that could produce a nice, well designed jacket at a price someone on an okay wage could afford has been hollowed out, and collabs like Jil Uniqlo and Uniqlo U or "premium" lines at Gap, Zara etc. sort of taking their place. Also small brands doing more direct and less wholesale means smaller minimums from factories and higher costs for consumers (which has nothing to do with the quality of the fabrics/make/design)
Fucking with the view Spyplane. I think the example you lay out is spot on. I personally have adjusted my jawn copping mindset mode to: COAST (Cool Origins AND Strategic Timing). My wardrobe is in a great spot right now and I’m only adding to it if something is crafted by an expert, replacing a garment that exceeded expectations, or I’m truly Wowed by something. I personally think if we’re more contemplative with our cops we’ll all level up with taste, style, etc. and we’ll hopefully be lowering the demand for frivolous un needed entries into the marketplace. Keep on keepin on Spyplane.
The unspoken critique - DIALECTIC??? - that seems to be at play of your example jacket needing democratization is that "scaling" production requires engagement in a system that is profoundly undemocratic. Globalized supply chains and labor arbitrage are the only way to get there. Which kind of feels like the point small makers are making implicitly.
Those Verner Panton IKEA chairs instantly make me think about Enzo Mari's ideas behind Autoprogettazione, and what "democratization" can mean when you do it your damn self. Of course, the irony then when Artek charged more than 300 bucks for the privilege of building the Sedia-1 yourself.
Adam Davidson did an excellent and tragic NPR story a decade ago about an NYC bespoke tailor who couldn't afford to make himself a suit, and refused to buy off the rack...
https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2012/09/07/160694255/this-man-makes-beautiful-suits-but-he-cant-afford-to-buy-one
Great Sletter! I think the market is in a weird space at the moment where the middle has been progressively hollowed out and we're left with ever escalating-price luxury goods (with shoddier quality in a lot of cases) and hyper-fast fashion. A lot of the middle space where department stores sat that could produce a nice, well designed jacket at a price someone on an okay wage could afford has been hollowed out, and collabs like Jil Uniqlo and Uniqlo U or "premium" lines at Gap, Zara etc. sort of taking their place. Also small brands doing more direct and less wholesale means smaller minimums from factories and higher costs for consumers (which has nothing to do with the quality of the fabrics/make/design)
Fucking with the view Spyplane. I think the example you lay out is spot on. I personally have adjusted my jawn copping mindset mode to: COAST (Cool Origins AND Strategic Timing). My wardrobe is in a great spot right now and I’m only adding to it if something is crafted by an expert, replacing a garment that exceeded expectations, or I’m truly Wowed by something. I personally think if we’re more contemplative with our cops we’ll all level up with taste, style, etc. and we’ll hopefully be lowering the demand for frivolous un needed entries into the marketplace. Keep on keepin on Spyplane.
The unspoken critique - DIALECTIC??? - that seems to be at play of your example jacket needing democratization is that "scaling" production requires engagement in a system that is profoundly undemocratic. Globalized supply chains and labor arbitrage are the only way to get there. Which kind of feels like the point small makers are making implicitly.
Those Verner Panton IKEA chairs instantly make me think about Enzo Mari's ideas behind Autoprogettazione, and what "democratization" can mean when you do it your damn self. Of course, the irony then when Artek charged more than 300 bucks for the privilege of building the Sedia-1 yourself.