They’re designed in a way that’s far removed from everyday life, pursuing the ultimate in opulence. Of course, I’m well aware that there are plenty of people who make these items part of their lifestyle, but sometimes I still wonder…
Have we consumers just been caught up in some secret marketing social experiment?
I can just picture these brand executives sitting around a conference table laughing about what they’ve been able to sell us.
Every one of us has found themselves buying something unnecessary that we just had to have at the time. That’s natural human weakness—and could even be considered a kind of lovable fallibility we all have. But some things I’ve seen that go far beyond to the point of being absolutely superfluous.
Take, for example, Prada safety pins. The interesting thing is that they aren’t even sold in Italy—yet they are prominently featured on American department store websites. It’s a simple thing, just a cotton string woven around a brass safety pin, but they’re selling them for something like 340–671 euros each. No matter how you look at it, it’s a combination that can hardly be justified as a luxury product. I’d really like to know how many people have actually bought this thing.
Meanwhile, Louis Vuitton has put out a product that has cleverly captured the hearts of dog owners—a lidded leather food bowl priced at 1,800 euros. The lid resembles the bell-shaped cloche that covers food served in fancy restaurants, creating a sense of grandeur before the dog’s lips even taste the food. I wonder if dogs treated to this luxurious approach to dining develop some sense that they’re living a lavish life and end up changing their behavior as a result.
I also heard that Balenciaga, after relocating to Paris from Spain, is selling a set of tags for 195 euros. What’s even harder to believe is that they’re made of scented ceramic, with notes like “tobacco,” “silk,” and “sewing machine oil”—making it hard to imagine what they would even smell like. They’re clearly marked as “non-returnable” also, which I guess is understandable in this case?
Fendi is selling a squirrel-shaped charm for kids—which is cute enough, but at the same time completely baffling. Made with fox and sheep fur, it certainly has a fluffy, storybook charm. But it’s 850 euros! What child is going to stop their feet impatiently demanding such an item?
The most extreme example is a smart speaker by Hermes that costs about 25,300 euros. Sure, it has a high-performance sound system, but you can get virtually the same thing on Amazon for a few thousand yen. They’re justifying the astronomical price by saying it’s made with something called Vachetta leather. But come on—is it woven from the mythical Golden Fleece itself?
Looking at these items makes you realize that luxury brands aren’t just in the business of selling goods, but of crafting desire itself. Items this far removed from everyday life push the boundaries of what we consider normal, casting a kind of magic spell on us in the process.
In the end, I guess it has nothing to do with whether something is necessary, but whether it feels special to us—and that irrationality itself must be part of the draw. The world of luxury certainly plays a strange role in our lives.
