Is "Designer" In The Eye Of The Beholder?

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by: JermaineGrenville
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Date: Thu, 7 Apr 2011 Time: 5:12 PM
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Beginning a conversation the other day at the park with some friends of mine and one of my friends was telling me about a new designer shoe that a prominent athletic footwear manufacturer was about to come out with. My response was," get out of here, they are not a real designer so how can they make a designer shoe?" but as I did my research online I did indeed find that this athletic footwear manufacturer was planning on launching a designer shoe.

So I guess my question at this point is," if the shoe does not derive from one of the great fashion houses of Europe or Manhattan, can it really be considered designer?" In the process of this conversation my girlfriend brought to my attention that there are indeed some fashion houses that have in fact created athletic shoes for their clientele. So by the same rationale could their shoe realistically be considered an athletic shoe seeing as how the science and the workmanship are not at all there, but the shoe is primarily for show?

Surely in this very fashion conscious world that we find ourselves living in the announcement of a new designer shoe should bring great joy in the hearts of some, however for those that are a little more dyed in the wool what actually constitutes "designer"? It has to be more than just a conversation I am sure,
For many fashionistas designer has everything to do with the label. It must come from one of the established houses of Europe or New York in order for it to be truly a designer product. But where is it written in stone that this is the way it must be? And who was to say that a Gucci shoe is anymore or any less a designer shoe than something from the house of Converse.

Does a rose by any other name smell just as sweet? Apparently not according to people that are really into their labels. By some people standards if the label is not that of an established European design house or one of the established New York houses, then it is not "real designer" material. Many believe that what applies for one portion of clothing should apply to all, whether it is a skirt or a shirt, pants or a cap, and then it should certainly apply for shoes.

Oftentimes this is one of the very first things that an individual will look for when seeking a designer product. The label in the minds of many is the seal of approval; it is the difference between wearing what is considered clothing royalty, and wearing something from the discount clothing store. Oftentimes for psycho-social reasons individuals will insist upon a designer label for whatever article of clothing or shoes their purchasing. It can be the difference between making the sale or the sale never happening. Some people insist on wearing designer labels on clothing because they feel as though it sets them apart from the unwashed masses.

Whatever the reason there is no debating that oftentimes there is a higher quality of construction of the garments that come from the designer houses as opposed to the clothing that is manufactured by assembly lines in factories in China and shipped over to the American discount stores for distribution. For some individuals labels don't matter at all, for them it is all about the look. Many folks that are really into their designers can see at a glance the difference between a shirt manufactured by Brooks Brothers and a shirt manufactured in Beijing. These are the people that are really going to be into whether or not something is truly "designer" and they are going to make that determination based on the quality of the garment, or the cap, or the shoe and not necessarily upon the label.

So will a connoisseur of athletic shoes be equally as discerning when they look at issue by Gucci? Or will they base their decision of the shoes on how they actually feel on their feet, and how they perform on the court. So perhaps, just perhaps "designer" really is in the eye of the beholder.

About the Author

Jermain Grenville is a fashion writer and urban culture expert with over a decade of experience in the urban fashion world. Find out more at ny yankees caps or high top