Posted on 11/26/2006 7:00:04 AM PST by TigerLikesRooster
Gucci and Prada for the under-13 crowd
By Alana Semuels, Times Staff Writer
November 24, 2006
Dressed in pink Uggs, Seven jeans and a matching pink sweater and cap, Elizabeth Cohen looks the epitome of hip as she winds her way through the holiday crowds at the Grove shopping center in Los Angeles.
She is a discerning consumer — her Ugg boots are not knockoffs, and she names Prada and Dolce & Gabbana as her favorite brands.
She's also 10 years old.
"I ask her, 'What do you need these for?' " said her mother, Jane Cohen of Bel-Air, who shops mostly at vintage stores and garage sales.
But the 10-year-old is hardly unusual. Elizabeth and other "tweens" — kids who are 8 to 12 — are expected to contribute to growing demand for luxury goods this winter.
Today, the season shopfest begins in earnest with day-after-Thanksgiving sales, crowds and traffic jams. For tweens and their older teenage counterparts, the search is on for expensive accessories, belts, purses and perhaps a pair of shoes such as those seen in fashion shows and glossy magazines.
"There's a huge uptick in teens shopping for traditional luxury brands," said Jim Taylor, vice chairman of the Harrison Group, a strategic marketing firm that recently conducted a survey of teenagers' preferences. "Having a Gucci scarf is part of being a kid today."
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
Not to have one is like not feeling like a normal human being. It is a must-have item to fit into in-group. It is a social pathology alright.
It was here 20-30 years ago when my kids were growing up. If you didn't wear certain brands, you didn't fit iin.
So, who PAYS for this stuff? Parents have no one but themselves to blame for their childrens' materialism.
Well, this time the bill is much higher. We are not talking about "Alligator" shirts.
Moms are busy fulfilling their life. Kids watch TV's and Internet, or hang out with kids of their ages most of time. Mass media and peer group overwhelm their social space. It is inevitable.
"'I ask her, 'What do you need these for?' said her mother, Jane Cohen of Bel-Air, who shops mostly at vintage stores and garage sales..."
...in order to pander to her daughter's WANTS, not NEEDS.
My kid went through his "designer" phase when he was in Junior High. I understand all about the "fitting in" stuff because when I was a teen, our brand of jeans were very important to us, too.
I would buy name-brand stuff if I found it at Goodwill, and he was given a clothing allowance, BUT if all of it was spent on one pair of jeans, he knew he was out of luck for anything else he needed that season.
What a marvelous teaching opportunity for parents to use, but when you have numbskulls like this Mom, it's a lost concept. I mean, I'm sure a monthly clothing allowance in Bel Aire is equal to a mortgage payment for us. *Rolleyes*
This little girl is going to make a great Ex-Wife for some unlucky future guy, LOL!
Prostitots.
Hey, you wern't cool if you didn't wear Converse All Stars. I remember how tough it was to convince my Mom to spend $6.99 on sneakers! :)
Converse are back in, don't you know? My daughter wanted a pair and loves them, the boys kind. *sigh* At least she doesn't dress like a hooker.
$100 Nikes were around in the 70s.
Mommy, "I want this"... Yes dear...
how sadly true
LOL. For quite a while, I did not understand what they meant by Ugg boots. I thought they are a kind of "cheap ugly boots," but I know better now that I have read this article.
This teaches all the wrong lessons and values. These parents aren't doing their kids any good at all, in the long run. It's sad really.
There's your liberal parent. She asks her daughter what she needs, maybe even protests a little, and then goes out and buys them for her.
Didn't know that the craze for gangsta Nike started much earlier.:-)
Kids got killed in ghettos of 80's for sporting a pair of such sneakers.
that would be "asks why she needs them.."
I agree...
This is but the old Jewish princess stereotype brought to life.
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