harlemriver
Senior Member
- Joined
- Feb 6, 2012
- Messages
- 132
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- 58
With the BalmainxH&M collection looming, this conversation is worth revisiting. Rousteing's take on Balmain is less about the clothes and more about the fanfare. He is a good representative for the brand in terms of celebrity (over)exposure, being an ambassador for social media and giving people something to notice as they scroll through Instagram even if they care not to.
Balmain, sadly, is no longer about the clothes. The main staples that still sell were introduced during the Decarnin era. Someone on this thread mentioned that the tailoring has improved after Decarnin. That is just not true. Decarnin and his team made the Balmain silhouette for much of the tailoring and that has not changed. It is my limited understanding, that while Balmain has increased its online visibility in recent years (social media, celeb stunts etc) the sales have actually decreased; namely because 1) the women's collection does not look all that compelling when it is worn by anyone 2) there is a perceived drop in quality across the board 3) the brand is so diluted that real authoritative trendsetters have long since moved on.
Balmain pimped its own self out and is in a precarious position as it could fall victim to the quest for dominance in appealing to mini-mass consumers that 1) do not buy the clothes anyway 2) are fickle 3) do not have any sense of true style. I understand that a brand must continue seeking relevance and approval in a world of more-is-never-enough and give-it-to-me-yesterday, but you have to strike a balance. You do not want to read as Topshop/Topman at a steeper price point.
Social media and select celebrity product placement are keys to promoting growth. However, the growth cannot solely rest on those two laurels because it is not sustainable. You just end up looking trashy.
Balmain, sadly, is no longer about the clothes. The main staples that still sell were introduced during the Decarnin era. Someone on this thread mentioned that the tailoring has improved after Decarnin. That is just not true. Decarnin and his team made the Balmain silhouette for much of the tailoring and that has not changed. It is my limited understanding, that while Balmain has increased its online visibility in recent years (social media, celeb stunts etc) the sales have actually decreased; namely because 1) the women's collection does not look all that compelling when it is worn by anyone 2) there is a perceived drop in quality across the board 3) the brand is so diluted that real authoritative trendsetters have long since moved on.
Balmain pimped its own self out and is in a precarious position as it could fall victim to the quest for dominance in appealing to mini-mass consumers that 1) do not buy the clothes anyway 2) are fickle 3) do not have any sense of true style. I understand that a brand must continue seeking relevance and approval in a world of more-is-never-enough and give-it-to-me-yesterday, but you have to strike a balance. You do not want to read as Topshop/Topman at a steeper price point.
Social media and select celebrity product placement are keys to promoting growth. However, the growth cannot solely rest on those two laurels because it is not sustainable. You just end up looking trashy.
