Welcome to the Era of the Flex Item
photo courtesy of shuttershock.com
College kids may be living on a diet of Ramen, but that doesn’t mean they’re not sporting ultra-luxury designer items.
Go on Instagram and search “#GucciBelt”—it’s tagged in 1.1 million posts. Go search “#OffWhite”—the brand appears in 7.9 million posts. The classic “#LouisVuittonBag” is tagged in 1.2 million posts. #HermesBelt has 713,000 tags. #AirForce1 is featured in 1.4 million tags. These tags are a product of the newest era, the “Flex Item.”
Across Instagram, and often in person, more and more people are sporting luxury designer items that are easily noticeable and linked to high price tags. Students from Syracuse and Illinois said they have seen an uptick in these sorts of items being featured in posts. People may be wearing ordinary sweatpants and a sweatshirt, but their Louis Vuitton bag will be front and center. Others may be wearing a classic ‘party’ outfit consisting of jean shorts and a tank, but their boastful Gucci Belt insists on drawing in all the attention. One favorite item of college students are high- priced shoes. We’re talking about those Louboutins, Yeezys and the newest addition, the Balenciaga Croc.
“I see it on the shoes,” said S.U. Fashion Design Professor Linda Tomkins. “They all obviously spend the money on the shoes.”
Walking across the S.U. campus, you’re likely to see the classic yellow threading of Doc Martens, the signature three stripes of Adidas or the signature silhouette of Nike’s Air Force One. “I feel like most people wear Air Force Ones or platform shoes,” said fashion design student Miriam Joyce. Joyce herself even has a pair of Air Force Ones and features them on her Instagram. Along with the Nikes, Joyce has noticed a surge in the popularity of Doc Martens. Owner of shoe and clothing store J. Michael on Marshall, Erik Hicks, has also seen this surge.
“Footwear wise, Doc Martens have really been trending back,” Hicks said. J. Michael’s slogan reads “If it’s hot, it’s here.” S.U. students can attest to the fact that many items in the store can also be found on the bodies of students walking around campus. In fact, one review on J. Michael’s Yelp page reads: “J. Michaels must take a daily stroll around Syracuse University campus and tally up the most popular items they see.”
While Hicks claims the store does not peruse campus in search of student trends, he says the store gets an idea of what’s hot through speaking with customers and attending trade shows in New York City. Though J. Michael’s wide assortment of Canada Goose parkas, Doc Martens, Timberland boots and Patagonia zip-ups keep up with the pricey demands of students, Hicks says that the trend of high-priced luxury items has been a bit difficult for the store to follow.
“We can’t capitalize on a lot of it because it’s often a one-off vintage item, or it’s a brand like Balenciaga or Off-White— something crazy that we couldn’t stock or there’s very few of,” Hicks said. “That’s what makes them special.”
And though for now it seems the trend of flex items is here to stay, Hicks sees a growing interest from students in supporting brands that market themselves as sustainable and cruelty-free. He sees Patagonia as being at the forefront of this trend and believes Save the Duck is a brand to look out for in the future.
Professor Tomkins also sees sustainable brands as the future of fashion. Currently teaching a class on contemporary issues in fashion, she says sustainability is one of the main talking points. She sees this issue as being something that brands are reckoning with now, and if they’re not, it may be something that’ll have to start thinking about.
“Modern brands, companies and retailers are acknowledging what’s happening with sustainability and what their places are within the issue,” Tomkins said. “I think this generation in particular is especially interested in that.”