Deluxe: How Luxury Lost Its Lustre - Softcover

Dana Thomas

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0141019670 ISBN 13: 9780141019673

Publisher: Penguin Books, 2008

Synopsis

Fashion may be fabulous, but what price true luxury? With incredible access to the glamorous world of the luxury brand, "Deluxe goes" deep inside the workings of today's world of profit margins and market share to discover the fate of real luxury. From the importance of fashion owners, to red carpet stars and the seasonal 'must-have' handbags, Dana Thomas shows how far illustrious houses have moved from their roots. Thomas witnesses how these 'luxury' handbags are no longer one in a million, discovers why luxury brand clothing doesn't last as long, and finds out just who is making your perfume. From terrifying raids on the Chinese sweat shops to the daunting chic of Paris workshops, from the handcrafting and economics of early-twentieth century designers to the violent truth behind the 'harmless' fakes, "Deluxe" goes deep into the world of extravagance, and asks: where can true luxury go now?

About this title

About the Author:

Dana Thomas has written for The New York Times magazine, the New Yorker, WSJ, the Financial Times, Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, and was the European editor of Conde Nast Portfolio. She is a contributing editor for T: The New York Times Style magazine, and the author of The New York Times bestseller, Deluxe: How Luxury Lost Its Lustre. She lives in Paris.

From Publishers Weekly:

Newsweek reporter Thomas skillfully narrates European fashion houses' evolution from exclusive ateliers to marketing juggernauts. Telling the story through characters like the French mogul Bernard Arnault, she details how the perfection of old-time manufacturing, still seen in Hermès handbags, has bowed to sweatshops and wild profits on mediocre merchandise. After a brisk history of luxury, Thomas shows why handbags and perfume are as susceptible to globalization and corporate greed as less rarefied industries. She follows the overarching story, parts of which are familiar, from boardrooms to street markets that unload millions in counterfeit goods, dropping irresistible details like a Japanese monk obsessed with Comme des Garçons. But she's no killjoy. If anything, she's fond of the aristocratic past, snarks at "behemoths that churn out perfume like Kraft makes cheese" and is too credulous of fashionistas' towering egos. Despite her grasp of business machinations, her argument that conglomerates have stolen luxury's soul doesn't entirely wash. As her tales of quotidian vs. ultra luxury make clear, the rich and chic can still distinguish themselves, even when Las Vegas hosts the world's ritziest brands. Thomas might have delved deeper into why fashion labels inspire such mania, beyond "selling dreams," but her curiosity is contagious. (Aug.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About this edition

• Publisher: Penguin Books
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 0141019670
• ISBN 13: 9780141019673
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 384