Pyrex Visions, an upscale streetwear brand run by Virgil Abloh, Kanye West’s creative director, recently sold out of the above right flannel shirt, at $550 a pop. An exorbitantly high price, to be sure (especially when you factor in the huge, tacky screenprinting on the back), but apparently not unheard of in the world of fashion brands run by creative directors to world-famous rapper producers. There’s also a $225 Champion hoodies, to give you an idea of the world we’re in, here.
The real sin, however, is not the insane price, but the fact that the shirts may have been bought at retail from Rugby, slapped with some decals, then marked up by hundreds of dollars (the original retailed for $79.95 and is currently on sale for $35.99).
Four Pins explains:
For one, you simply can’t buy Rugby wholesale. It was a sub-brand that Ralph Lauren sold only in Rugby stores. Secondly, they are definitely made of the same fabric, but what seals the deal are the same construction details (triple-stitched construction at the arms, a pencil pocket on the left chest pocket) and the obvious Photoshop job that shows remnants of an old Rugby tag on the flannels.
If that doesn’t sell you on the rip-off, the menswear blog has some pretty damning photos as well, including close-ups of the aforementioned shoddy Photoshop job.
If this were an Exit Through the Gift Shop-style skewering of art/fashion-world hype, it’d be a sharp, hilarious criticism at the expense of a few dopey consumers. Unfortunately, it seems to be just another rip-off artist, ripping people off.
