Christian Louboutin’s Fetish-Worthy Sandal Boots
Posted on April 11th, 2009 by galligator under 6pm.com, Boots, Christian Louboutin Shoes, Designer Shoe Déja Vu, Fall 2008 Shoes, High heels, Hot Shoe Deals and Steals, Platforms, Sandals, Spring 2009 ShoesIs it designer shoe deja-vu when it is high-end borrowing from high-street and/or alternative fashion?
I have seen a lot of online rants over copycat and designer-inspired fashion. Certain consumers hate the idea of brand-dilution that they perceive to occur as trends spread out into the general populace. Others love the opportunity to get a designer look or similar style at a fraction of the runway price.
Interestingly, I rarely see discussions on brand-dilution or concerns over intellectual property when this situation occurs in reverse.
I’m also curious when this style-borrowing happens at the haute-couture level. At what price range and perceived quality level do shoes move from being outrageously stripperlicious (thank you jitterbugbaby for adding that word to my vocabulary) and instead transform into glamourous, runway-quality, high-fashion objects? If these styles were made by anyone other than shoe-royalty, would women be lining up to own such styles?
Today’s case in point:
Christian Louboutin’s ‘multi-buckle sandals $1495 at Saks.com
This hybrid sandal boot is straight out of the ‘more buckles, more skin’ school of footwear-as-lingerie. Heck, if you are a size 6, you can get a very similar look on clearance over at 6pm.com; and at a fraction of the above price:
Report ‘Diaz’ $87.75 $175 at 6pm.com
I actually prefer the Report boot over the current season Louboutin version. I like that the Report boot has a softer feel due to its natural leather upper and its more-rounded cut-out styling.
Anyway, I’m of the opinion that fashion is cyclical. High-fashion borrows from low and low-fashion borrows from high; this back-and-forth cycle helps keeps fashion feeling fresh and dynamic.
Here’s a question:
What type of consumer criticisms might have occurred if the Report shoes had appeared the season after the Louboutin’s instead of before? I’ve seen enough folks cry ‘Copy!’ ‘Get your own designs!’ over the appearance of a plain black platform pump that I have to admit to being curious to the answer on this one.
I welcome your thoughts and observations.
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Piperlime
April 11th, 2009 at 8:55 pm
I don’t think it would be as a big a deal if louboutin “copied” Report, because I doubt a large number of people would automatically recognize the borrowing. Report fans may be like, “Oh Lou stole from Report!”, but anyone else wouldn’t even recognize or care. The Louboutins are so popularized that EVERYONE knows what they look like, so if a smaller brand does something similar, the general public automatically assumes the smaller brand stole from Louboutin.
April 12th, 2009 at 10:43 am
Are you sure the Report shoes showed up after the Louboutin’s? I saw the Louboutin’s last Autumn on pre-order. Either way, they are both quite different, the Report shoes look more like a version of last year’s Margiela’s. Oh, and I had purchased a pair of Report Signature (I presume they are the same company?) shoes from Bluefly last year and sent them straight back. The most painful things I have ever put on my feet! No comparison with Louboutin’s!
April 12th, 2009 at 3:01 pm
No, the Report are last season and the Louboutin are this season, so the Report came 1st. And as for comfort - that to me has so much to do with individual foot shape as anything else. CL’s are comfy to some women & painful to other women (same thing with Report, or Prada, or Steve Madden, etc).
I’m just putting this out there as an example of how fashion influences move & how names affect our perceptions….
Also, if I found certain brands (be they $20 or $500) always fit me comfortably - then that would be a brand that I would be more willing to pay for as it would have increased personal value in my eyes. If that makes sense….
April 12th, 2009 at 3:17 pm
Now I need to see the Margiela’s….
Sometimes it seems like there are too many shoes to keep track of them all.
April 12th, 2009 at 5:02 pm
I agree, too many shoes to keep track of! But its fun trying!
Yes, in reference to your other post about comfort, it does make sense. I’ve learned the hard way that for me, cheap shoes wind up being a poor choice as they always hurt, so I don’t wind up wearing them. Money wasted, even if it wasn’t much, is a poor buy. But if I splurge on higher end shoes, I have them forever and they never hurt, whether they are flats or sky high. I also happen to be hard on shoes, so buying quality is better for me as they last better and are worth getting repaired when needed. So I suppose it comes down to trial and error being your best bet at finding what is most comfortable and durable.
April 12th, 2009 at 5:50 pm
I kinda like the borrowing aspect of shoe design. It’s nice to be able to go to a store with shoes at a lower-price point that pays homage to the designer originals. Didn’t Chanel put their insignia on a ballet flat long before random designs were scrolled into shoes for sale at Target?
Someone’s got to do it first.
April 12th, 2009 at 6:46 pm
they are similar but not exactly alike…. there are only so many designs out there so eventually there bound to have similarities.
April 12th, 2009 at 7:14 pm
With fashion design, it’s difficult to set strict intellectual property standards. One tweak, and it’s a different design. In the end, the real determinant is consumer demand, and lower prices appeal to one segment of the market, while the attraction for high-end brands appeals to a different segment altogether. Regardless, I like them both.
April 13th, 2009 at 10:53 am
I agree with the comment about the difficulty with intellectual property standards. It is particularly difficult to defend on so-called utilitarian items like shoes. I believe that the process of copying and borrowing actually promotes growth and helps keep styles from becoming stagnant, but I have encountered many folks who disagree and are mightily offended when similar or copy-cat items are produced (legal copies).
Oh, and I do kind of like both styles, but I’m not sure if CL’s will ever be in my budget.
On a positive note, this particular hybrid style is appearing with many different variations based on a brief sampling of what is popping up in stores.
April 16th, 2009 at 9:00 am
I found a pair similar to these that look a lot better then the “Reports” at Electriqueboutique.com for $28.99!!! Just search under Aspen02, I can’t wait for them to come in!
April 28th, 2009 at 11:23 pm
i dnt think real women wud wear this shoe….
Indian Handicrafts
May 8th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
tell me I don’t look old enough to have an eighteen year old son! So what am I going to wear?