Rich People Don't Want Ivanka Trump's Fashion

[DonViejo]

Source: Bloomberg

The first daughter aimed her label at wealthy sophisticated women, but it didn’t take. So she moved downmarket.

by Kim Bhasin and Lindsey Rupp

May 30, 2017, 4:00 AM EDT May 30, 2017, 8:06 AM EDT



At a T.J. Maxx discount shop in the shadow of New York’s Queensboro bridge, there’s little sign of Ivanka Trump's fashion label. But she’s there. Dangling next to a bright red Fossil handbag is a single, blush-leather Ivanka Trump satchel. A flip of the tag reveals a $129 price, about the same as the other bags on the rack. Spread among the jumble are items by Guess? Inc., Nine West Group Inc., Steve Madden Ltd., and even a decidedly cheaper option from the Jessica Simpson Collection.

None of this screams luxury, yet that’s the brand image Trump, 35, originally envisioned: An icon of extravagance similar to what her father spent decades trying to build. When she began selling her brand as a fine jewelry label, she looked to Tiffany & Co.’s robin egg-blue box and Christian Louboutin Ltd.’s red-soled pumps for inspiration. She placed Trump wares in the same realm as such storied couture names as Harry Winston Inc. and Van Cleef & Arpels. She even opened an opulent boutique on Manhattan’s Madison Avenue.

Somewhere along the way, though, Ivanka Trump went downmarket. Her label now represents a much more modest image, perhaps recognizing exactly where on the retail continuum her products truly reside. At its heart, Ivanka Trump is a celebrity brand, not a designer fashion house, industry analysts say. It’s the messy discount rack, not the gleaming glass jewelry case. Her company’s moves over the past few years reflect that. And as it turns out, targeting the masses has worked.

“Celebrities, as a branding tool, appeal more to the mass than luxury,” said Allen Adamson, the New York-based founder of consulting firm BrandSimple. “The further downmarket she goes, the more horsepower her brand potentially has.”

Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-05-30/rich-people-don-t-want-ivanka-trump-s-fashion

[Aristus]

1. Middle-class people don't, either.

Mrs. Aristus vowed over two years ago never to buy that brand of shoes again.

[Txbluedog]

2. Her "fashun" is aimed for father's deplorables

no matter what she claims. She knows that people who can but couture are never going to buy the crap she peddles, but she has to say stuff like that to make it more appealing to the them---make them feel like they are getting couture.

[C_U_L8R]

3. No one wants to be that tacky

on purpose.

[Moostache]

4. I disagree....there are some 60,000,000 or so deplorables that think its awesome. (n/t)

[samnsara]

5. but unless she sells her stuff at walmart they aint gonna buy it

[BumRushDaShow]

11. THIS exactly!

[Doreen]

17. My thought exactly.

[C_U_L8R]

12. Unless the waistlines are elastic

that stuff is going nowhere with deporables

[dalton99a]

22. +1

[karynnj]

16. There are not 60,000,000 potential buyers of her stuff

Of the 60,000,000, over half are men and you can rule them out. Then many could not afford her prices. Then, for the clothes, eliminate any who are not young and relatively slender. I would imagine that for many spending that much would be done only on a special occasion dress and they likely could find something better made and more flattering elsewhere.

As to her (copied) shoes and bags, the question might be what their actual quality is - something I absolutely know nothing about.

What I do know is that her market is still young women - even as she moves out of young, upscale, professional women. It sounds like the majority of that market was Hillary's base. Her name then becomes a negative, not a positive - and the product is priced higher due to the "value" of the brand.

Another point - about a decade ago, many companies were hurt when it came out that their products were made in sweatshops overseas. One industry reaction was that many overseas manufacturers of clothes agreed to a set of principles in operating their factories and many manufacturers demanded that their stuff be made in factories that complied. This was the result of people here who protested companies like GAP. Their motivation was that there were customers who demanded that.

[Girard442]

6. Me, I'd be quite happy selling good products into a downscale market.

But the thought probably makes Ivanka nauseous and that makes me smile.

[Sanity Claws]

7. If it shows up at TJ Maxx, that means no one wants it

It ends up being severely discounted at places like TJ Maxx. I sometimes shop at Lord & Taylor and see her stuff on the clearance racks. Her stuff is cheaply made and kind of tacky looking. Definitely not a career look.

[get the red out]

10. I think it looks tacky too

Not really that professional.

[3catwoman3]

28. "If it shows up at TJ Maxx, that means no one wants it."

Precisely! Every now and then, you may come across something worthwhile there, but for most of the items, yoou can easily tell why they didnt sell elsewhere - FUGLY!

[Liberalagogo]

8. Homeless people

might consider wiping their asses with her stuff.

[ck4829]

9. Her stuff is for fools who would sell their children for a chance to be rich...

Vote like they are rich, believe the reason they aren't rich is because liberals, immigrants, minorities, and people poorer than them are keeping them down, and are mocked by the rich behind their backs. But keep treating them like demigods, they're going to trickle the wealth on you any day now.

[JI7]

13. she isn't a designer

[luvMIdog]

14. I'd put money on betting she has never sat in front of a sewing machine, etc in her life

[lark]

15. "Potentially"

Nope, wrong. She's not lowering her prices enough to compete in the discount market and her stuff is too chintzy and cheap to attract upper echelon buying. I'd definitely buy the cheaper and cuter Jessica Simpson purse over her ugly things.

[Doreen]

18. Does she even wear her own crap?

[onetexan]

19. she did so during the election to entice people to buy

and shamelessly plugged them online after the event. I recall reading about at least one particular dress being hocked and sure enough, numbnut trumpers snatched them up. Same with her jewelry. Also recall KellyAnn plugging her line on interviews. Shameless doesn't even begin to describe these people.

[Doreen]

20. Disgusting

[Grammy23]

23. My response at the time when she walked out in that blush pink dress was that it had nice lines.

Then, she turned around and the poor construction was obvious. I couldn't help but notice there was puckering in several places. The fit especially in the back was just not good and made an otherwise nice dress look cheap. I suppose if we had a good, close-up view of the fabric, it would have looked cheap, too, but she was on stage so it was harder to make a judgement about the fabric. But the construction? It was not well done. I think I saw later that you could go on line and buy that dress for $139.00.....which is far from coutour clothing.

No wonder she has had to lower her sights and asperations. Tee hee.....

[onetexan]

24. i've seen the clothing - quality is definitely lacking

and made abroad, not in the USA. They're definitely mass produced, and are of the type you'd find sold at Walmart and Sears. Many of the big name stores have stopped carrying her lines (clothing, shoes, bags, & jewelry), and those remaining in their stores deeply discounted from what i've read.
Her line is still available at second hand stores such as Marshalls & TJ Maxx, and several big names such as Bloomingdales, Dillards, zappos still do carry her stuff. Here's a list Elle has been tracking:
http://www.elle.com/culture/career-politics/news/a42677/stores-that-sell-ivanka-trump-fashion-shoes/

Bottom line people are still buying her stuff, so she's still making $. Shamelessly so.

[msongs]

21. not LBN. its gossip and opinion nt

[crazycatlady]

25. While I'm nowhere near as rich as her

I'm roughly the same age as her (turned 37 in March) and considered her contemporary. Even if I could afford her line, I just don't find it attractive. Demographically, I'm sure she's aiming for people like me

Then again I don't work in a corporate type environment with a strict dress code. I have two job interview appropriate outfits (black blazer with gray skirt, navy dress for summer interviews). And I don't consider paying out the wazoo for clothes anyways. $30 shoes are just as good as $300 shoes.

There are a few outfits of hers I liked (a dark green dress at some GOP event) and would consider wearing. But considering she's aiming for business attire, many of her dresses don't meet a strict dress code.

[onetexan]

29. Nowadays the dress code is business casual

So the fact her line isn't doing well is a result of that. I've worked in the corporate world many years & stuffy suits & outfits don't make the best employees.

[Warpy]

26. I said months ago that it was for suburban matrons

who were trying to dress "young" and missing completely. It's short but safe and a little dowdy.

You can take this for what it's worth from someone unfashionably attired in jeans, a cotton top from India, and sneakers.

[Kath2]

27. Yeah, but you are right.

"It's short but safe and a little dowdy."

And most women do not want to be associated with the Trump name in any way.