Sheep in wolf’s clothing

I have previously discussed on this site to the pitfalls of slavishly following fashion trends – be they styles of clothing or individual brands.

Photo: Sasa Zivaljevic

Negotiating this particular minefield is made especially difficult by the fact that niche labels that you may have picked up on in their infancy can suddenly tip and end up on the backs every Tom, Dick and Harry in the country – or, indeed, every Josh, Seb and Harry in the case of British brand Jack Wills.

Their clothes have recently become the satorial weapon of choice for our glossy, vacuous teenagers – ‘Nike for the middle classes’ according to the Guardian – an image which has undoubtedly chased away a number of its previous customers. But while the rapid spread of an individual brand can in any instance seriously detract from its style (as opposed to fashion) currency, it will naturally be the ones making their branding the most visible that will be the hardest hit.

A dramatic increase in the use of large logos on its clothes is one obvious change that has accompanied Jack Wills’ rise to prominence (the picture heading up the Guardian article shows this in its full glory). Previously the branding was more or less limited to a discreet ‘JW’ motif, letting the inherent style of the items do the talking.

Now, of course you can argue that the emblazoning of large logos all over Jack Wills’ clothing is precisely what has prompted it to tip into the wider population. But I can only feel that sticking to their original formula – attracting customers with its quality, not its visibility – would have left the brand in a stronger style position than they are in now.