You Really Are
What You Wear ...
Or at least your designer labels make
it seem that way
Finally: a good reason to go shopping.
A new study detailed in The Economist found that fashion labels give you perceived status: "designer" brands make you look richer and more employable.
Researchers Rob Nelissen and Marijn Meijers of Tilburg University in the Netherlands found that test subjects perceived the wearers of branded polo shirts (Lacoste and Tommy Hilfiger) to be of a higher status than non-branded items.
According to the Economist, the researchers found "such clothes do bring the benefits promised: co-operation from others, job recommendations and even the ability to collect more money when soliciting for charity."
Of course, this is hardly news to the likes of Ralph Lauren, Donna Karan or any other designer. These savvy marketers have known for ages that people buy into labels for the status they convey.
Even more interestong in this study was all of that perceived status went away when test subjects found out that the label wearers were given the "designer" item for free. "The shirt no longer represented an honest signal," said The Economist.
Seems that designer label status only works – according to this study – if we know that the wearer actually paid for the item.
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