The return of logo-mania

A friend of mine posted a photo of a beach bag on her Insta-feed this week. It was a Dior bag; you could tell, thanks to the logo pattern embossed all over the bag. Inside, there was a Tiffany & Co jewellery pouch - kept in such a way that you could see the brand name peeping out of the bag. And the post simply said #shallow! Well, I could not agree more: there is nothing I dislike more than logos.
First, though, I have to confess that my first "designer" bag purchase was a Louis Vuitton canvas tote; it had LV stamped all over. I was 18 years old and, at that stage, excited to make a "big-ticket purchase".
Luckily, I grew out of that stage!
This season, fashion houses cannot get enough of logo-mania. From Fendi to Vuitton, it's everywhere; and sometimes, they spell the name out in big full letters across the front of a bag just in case the initials are not obvious enough.
To me, this comes across as free advertising. And if a brand wants me to carry a bag with their name spelt out, they should pay me - for the free endorsement!
The first sign of a fashion victim is someone who wears logo. (Men can be guilty of this fashion crime too - with their "H" Hermès belts and "GG" Gucci loafers.)
The worst type of fashion victim mixes their logos. Picture a girl wearing a Burberry plaid skirt (which is as good as their logo) teamed with a Louis Vuitton monogram bag, and throwing in a pair of "CC" Chanel ballet shoes for some "bad taste" measure. By buying these pieces, you are literally playing (and paying) into the hands of the brands.
I mean, how can something that has a brand name plastered all over it be a thing of beauty? Is there any thinking that has gone into that? And where is the craft behind this piece of fashion? Zara, H&M and Topshop don't do logo pieces - because you would never advertise your love of a high street brand, that's too cheap!
I am left asking why logo-mania is back this season? Perhaps it has something to do with the current not-so-happy economic situation, which is making brands feel the need to play to the galleries. It is a time-tested way of enticing the millennial set or the first-time buyer in the new market to make that purchase.
It goes back to the reason of my first "branded" logo buy (I am not using the word luxury or fashion for a reason). I needed to show I had arrived. It was my rather immature and insecure way of saying: "I am a big girl. I spend on fashion, so I must know my fashion." But remember, you never have to shout to make yourself heard. That is just for #shallow people.
sujata@khaleejtimes.com