It’s almost irrelevant how many Jimmy Choo gladiator heels are sold; what matters is the crowds and the extra impulse spending on tops, knickers and jeans. But for luxury designers, this is a dance with the devil that could, if mishandled, destroy the cachet of a brand. James Lawson, a director at Ledbury, wonders how it benefits the likes of Jimmy Choo to be associated with H&M. “It’s a no-brainer for mass-market retailers, it creates awarenesss. But Jimmy Choo（handbags） could easily produce £50 shoes. The question is: does it destroy their ability to sell £500 shoes?”
It raises the prospect that the posh end of fashion will segment into true luxury and copycat luxury, or “bubble brands”, which hop between high street and Bond Street until their stars fade.
Or is Jimmy Choo really on to something? Could it be that the bottom and top end of retailing are in some way connected, leaving the middle out on a limb? It is the puritan middle who sniff at gladiator heels, who scoff at toe-crunching stilettos. Who wears such stuff? Footballers wives, bankers’ wives and office girls from Romford. What lies between them is just a price tag.
