Styles may come and go but Levi's seem to manage to weather the vicissitudes of trends, falling in and out of fashion but never disappearing. Taking a page from luxury jeansmakers, the original 501s get a boost into the world of premium denim through the use of nine ounce Japanese denim that is hand dyed using methods that recreate the process from the original jeans. The Levis® Vintage XX First Blue Rigid Jeans have the original cinchback style used in 501s and come with a special totebag. They sell for around $570 and will be released at the end of September. [via Acquire]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
7-23-2008 @ 2:27PM
Bill said...
Back in the day (the 70s and 80s) I never paid more than $20 for a pair of 501s. And, there's no way I'd pay $500+ for a pair of them now.
I don't care what sort of denim they're made from and how they're dyed. $500+? No way, nada, zip, zilch!
I realize that Levi's are trying to "upscale" themselves with a move like this. However, their jeans are so ubiquitous that I have my doubts that consumers will take the bait. But, hey, I've been wrong before. And, I'm probably wrong now. As the saying goes "A fool and his/her money are soon parted."
Speaking of jeans, I have a few pair that retail for $400+ (Untouched World, Kenzo, Gianfranco Ferre, etc..) But, there's no way I'd ever pay that much for them - I *never* pay retail for any of my clothes, and I buy quite often. As a matter of fact, the most I paid for any of these jeans is about $70. And, the majority of them were purchased for less than $20 - I'm not kidding.
I get all my clothing from factory outlets, sample sales and clearance centers. And, I don't buy unless I'm getting a 75%+ discount. These clothes are of the exact same styles and quality one would find in a High Street shop, without the incredible markup and huge dent in one's budget.
I work in fashion, so I have a good idea of what stuff cost to make. A $500+ pair of jeans rarely cost over $50 to make - it's usually much cheaper than that.
So, if one likes to dress well, but not spend a lot doing so, you know what to do now. ;)
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