What's wrong with Kate Spade purses?
January 22, 2025 8:03 AM Subscribe
On a reality show I'm watching, a couple is discussing the type of gifts the woman wants. The man said, "I know you don't need a Kate Spade purse to be happy.." And she says, "Ugh, don't ever get me one of those."
Are Kate Spade bags gross now?
I'm watching Love is Blind, I admit it.
I'm watching Love is Blind, I admit it.
No. The two reasons to hate on Kate Spade at diametrically opposed but are:
1. You think the bags are overpriced for the quality (they are -- nothing made of PU should be hundreds of dollars)
2. You think the bags are low-tier luxury bags (also true), do not want to be in the Michael Kors bracket, and are somebody no one should be friends with.
posted by DarlingBri at 8:30 AM on January 22 [20 favorites]
1. You think the bags are overpriced for the quality (they are -- nothing made of PU should be hundreds of dollars)
2. You think the bags are low-tier luxury bags (also true), do not want to be in the Michael Kors bracket, and are somebody no one should be friends with.
posted by DarlingBri at 8:30 AM on January 22 [20 favorites]
I think the lower price range and association with the millennial twee styling era (which is firmly out right now) means that Kate Spade is relatively uncool right now.
Luxury goods have had huge surges in price since the pandemic, so the "it" handbags for the past few years have been significantly more expensive than Kate Spade bags. There's also been a big styling shift towards "quiet luxury" and so most popular styles are typically more muted or neutral colors with less-structured silhouettes and without brand logos--all pretty different from the prototypical Kate Spade bag, which means even the more expensive retail Kate Spade bags look cheap/out-of-style to a lot of people.
Because of the association with Kate Spade outlet, I'm not even sure if people mentally count it as luxury anymore--my subjective perception of the luxury goods space right now is that a lot entry level, reasonably affordable and recognizable brands (i.e. anything sold at outlets or shopping malls in middle America) are considered gauche, and there are a lot of newer (post 2010) brands that have taken over the mid-tier market.
Lastly, specifically in the context of LIB, I think this line was included just to highlight the class difference between these two contestants. If you look up forum results discussing Love is Blind and/or handbags, you can see a lot of people talking about this line lol.
posted by hejrat at 9:30 AM on January 22 [9 favorites]
Luxury goods have had huge surges in price since the pandemic, so the "it" handbags for the past few years have been significantly more expensive than Kate Spade bags. There's also been a big styling shift towards "quiet luxury" and so most popular styles are typically more muted or neutral colors with less-structured silhouettes and without brand logos--all pretty different from the prototypical Kate Spade bag, which means even the more expensive retail Kate Spade bags look cheap/out-of-style to a lot of people.
Because of the association with Kate Spade outlet, I'm not even sure if people mentally count it as luxury anymore--my subjective perception of the luxury goods space right now is that a lot entry level, reasonably affordable and recognizable brands (i.e. anything sold at outlets or shopping malls in middle America) are considered gauche, and there are a lot of newer (post 2010) brands that have taken over the mid-tier market.
Lastly, specifically in the context of LIB, I think this line was included just to highlight the class difference between these two contestants. If you look up forum results discussing Love is Blind and/or handbags, you can see a lot of people talking about this line lol.
posted by hejrat at 9:30 AM on January 22 [9 favorites]
They’re just passé. A woman might respond the same way about a Michael Kors bag or a Coach bag (although vintage Coach is having a moment).
Brands that are no longer run by the name associated with them are rarely “cool” for long after the sale, as the sale usually signals a shift to a more mass-market brand strategy. Vintage pieces will cycle in and out of “cool” as young folks dig them out of thrift stores and parents’ closets, but new pieces are very rarely aspirational at that point.
(The exception is when brands hire a new prominent name designer as a creative lead, like what Zac Posen is currently doing for Gap (or like what Zac Posen previously tried and failed to do for Brooks Brothers, ha). This happens sometimes even for brands that are associated with a specific designer’s name. Then new pieces may be sufficiently differentiated from previous years that there is once again interest in the brand. But if you look at what the low-end Michael Kors or Calvin Klein or even Ralph Lauren lines have done over the past decade, it’s basically the same generic fashion year over year. Same too with Kate Spade; it is solid but uninteresting, and what person wants a present that is solid but uninteresting from her partner?)
posted by moosetracks at 9:33 AM on January 22 [1 favorite]
Brands that are no longer run by the name associated with them are rarely “cool” for long after the sale, as the sale usually signals a shift to a more mass-market brand strategy. Vintage pieces will cycle in and out of “cool” as young folks dig them out of thrift stores and parents’ closets, but new pieces are very rarely aspirational at that point.
(The exception is when brands hire a new prominent name designer as a creative lead, like what Zac Posen is currently doing for Gap (or like what Zac Posen previously tried and failed to do for Brooks Brothers, ha). This happens sometimes even for brands that are associated with a specific designer’s name. Then new pieces may be sufficiently differentiated from previous years that there is once again interest in the brand. But if you look at what the low-end Michael Kors or Calvin Klein or even Ralph Lauren lines have done over the past decade, it’s basically the same generic fashion year over year. Same too with Kate Spade; it is solid but uninteresting, and what person wants a present that is solid but uninteresting from her partner?)
posted by moosetracks at 9:33 AM on January 22 [1 favorite]
If you’re of a certain income bracket then Kate spade is for the poors.
But the poors don’t know any better so they think they’re being fashionable.
So, Two reasons to dislike - it telegraphs the owner as poor and fashion ignorant.
posted by St. Peepsburg at 10:58 AM on January 22 [1 favorite]
But the poors don’t know any better so they think they’re being fashionable.
So, Two reasons to dislike - it telegraphs the owner as poor and fashion ignorant.
posted by St. Peepsburg at 10:58 AM on January 22 [1 favorite]
Yah, you can get Kate Spade at Marshall’s in spades (lol); they’re no longer considered luxury
posted by functionequalsform at 1:58 PM on January 22 [1 favorite]
posted by functionequalsform at 1:58 PM on January 22 [1 favorite]
I watched the show you are referring to. That woman was clearly indicating that she likes *better* (more expensive) brands and considers Kate Spade low-class. It made me like her a lot less. And she wants fresh flowers all of the time, which gets very expensive, but she has a "lifestyle" to maintain.
posted by tacodave at 2:22 PM on January 22
posted by tacodave at 2:22 PM on January 22
Agree with all of the above comments, plus I think that among some cishet men who kind of keep up with culture but not really, "Kate Spade purse" is a kind of shorthand for "fancy bag" the way that "the Kardashians" is a shorthand for "any vain women I dislike." It's an outdated reference, is what I'm saying. And possibly well meaning but reminds me of an uncle or a dad kind of gently chiding a teen girl for being superficial.
posted by knotty knots at 8:29 PM on January 22 [2 favorites]
posted by knotty knots at 8:29 PM on January 22 [2 favorites]
Agree with knottyknots, and will also suggest that this woman may have been pushing back on the sort of partner who is so out of touch with female trends that he’s referencing Kate Spade. There are women who love the Kate Spade aesthetic, but it has not been a top brand for women in a good while. (Again, it’s solid but not aspirational).
After all, even in 2000, women were kind of over men promising them Kate Spade as a gift:
> Hey yo, you promised me Kate Spade / but that was last year, boy, in the eighth grade
posted by moosetracks at 3:20 AM on January 23
After all, even in 2000, women were kind of over men promising them Kate Spade as a gift:
> Hey yo, you promised me Kate Spade / but that was last year, boy, in the eighth grade
posted by moosetracks at 3:20 AM on January 23
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posted by SageTrail at 8:23 AM on January 22 [7 favorites]