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non fashion, desirable accessories are not new. Check out the Fendi baguette, the ’00s It bag or the latest Bulbul dad trainers. However, with social media’s increasing influence on style, shoes, bags and hats are getting more attention than ever. This is the era of viral exchange.
JW Anderson’s dove bag – a clutch modeled after a bird in resin – is a famous example. The brand has a waiting list on its site for being the most viewed item in August. It has since been featured on the Sarah Jessica Parker and Just Like That collection and by Sam Smith at London Fashion Week.
Balenciaga is another brand that has developed accessories for the age of social media. Their ad recently went viral for all the wrong reasons – it depicts children in BDSM costumes carrying teddy bears carrying handbags. Previous examples of the brand’s viral successes include its take on the popular Ikea Frakta, which looks like a bin bag but costs £1,290 and costs £1,365 against Ikea’s 40p.
But the viral accessory is not limited to designer fashion. This year, other items that have reached fever pitch online – particularly on Tik Tok – include a £90 Birkenstock Boston Mule and a £14.90 crossbody bag from Uniqlo. Videos with #uniqlobag have 35.2m views on TikTok, and inspired a similar design by fast fashion brand Shine. This year Bostonians’ demand was so high that sellers were selling them at exorbitant prices. In October, The New York Times reported that a shopper bought a pair for $330 (£271), compared to the RRP of $160 (£131).
For the third quarter of 2022, fashion search engine List revealed that eight of the 10 most sought-after items in their report were accessories – from Miu Miu ballet flats, which saw a 1,100% increase in searches, to Birkenstock Boston. This is set to continue. In the spring/summer 2023 catwalk collections, bags such as crystal teddy bear bags (Gucci) and dollhouse (Louis Vuitton) are already getting a buzz, and elbow-length gloves seem set as a trend.
“Accessories have become their own world, as opposed to ready-to-wear promotional gifts,” says Libby Page, marketing director at Net-a-Porter. “For the autumn/winter season alone, we’ve increased our range of bags, shoes and accessories by 65% due to high demand from our customers.”
Resale app Depop reports that 80% of shoppers say social media is their source of inspiration because secondhand goods are more affordable. “The cost of living is affecting shopping habits across the country, with most of us spending less to fill our wardrobes,” says Agustina Panzoni, Depop’s trends manager.
Designer accessories are a great choice – they are cheap, and a more affordable entry in luxury products. Even if the clothes you wear are not impressive, they are a way to show off your fashion sense. “We’re seeing more and more consumers try on a trend with accessories before committing to a high-end wardrobe purchase,” says Panzoni. Vintage Fendi baguette bags are particularly popular – searches are up 2,600% this year.
Biz Sherbert, culture editor at brand consulting firm Biz Sherbert, says an accessory-first approach makes sense in the age of social media. “They can act as props in your photo,” she says. “And take new forms in terms of what they represent [when seen] online”
Part of the success of these accessories may be that they have something of a cartoonish quality to them – which plays well into the end of online visual culture, the meme. In the year It is estimated that in 2020, at least 1m was shared on Instagram every day. They are a way of showing that we are in on the joke and in the news cycle. Fashion has long been a part of meme culture—everything from Kim Kardashian’s Met Gala outfit to Rihanna’s arrival at the Dior show has been turned into one.
Wearing the accessory featured in the meme — or asking for the meme — is probably the next step in this relationship. “Memes can take something innocuous and create the whole identity of the person around it,” says Sherbert. “It can also be really fun, fun and silly.”
Hey Reilly has an Instagram account dedicated to creating fashion memes, and he’s noticed the influence of meme culture on accessories. “This exchange trend is born from a meme. [and there is also] There is no fishing too subtle to catch. Digital disruptions and Insta creations will either reduce or exceed the latest trends in fashion for lols, and then we’ll see designers offering extra-large coats and shoes or trendy mini-handbags,” he says.
This style only involves eating meat. Although social media attention has moved away from Instagram, the added power of the statement remains. “[That’s especially true] Something like BeReal, which asks users to post pictures of their location once a day, says Sherbert of the “anti-Instagram” app. “The photos are weird and blurry. No one can see what they’re wearing, but a unique accessory stands out.
Reilly is cynical about this trend, calling accessories designed for memes “taking some of the imagination out of it.” As a nod to the brand’s famous baguette bag, he points to an Instagram of Sylvia Fendi’s French duffle. “It’s fashionable and [social media] Eating themselves.” Designed to be shared online, Balenciaga’s teddy bear ads also suggest that brand search can sometimes go too far when viral sharing takes place.
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