Is name brand clothing important to your children?

Question

I'm sure older kids are more caught up with designer labels....but at what age do they become conscious of this? Do parents aid in this trend? What role does school play?

Answer 1

Young children don't know or understand what labels mean unless their parents have given them an example of their "importance". I think it's ridiculous. My daughter is 3 and we bought her first pair of name brand tennis shoes last week because we are going on a vacation where she will be walking a lot and we wanted her to have a shoe that would last and have good support. You know what she calls them, her "purple shoes". Kids don't care what the label says, they care what color the shoe is, or if it has their favorite character on it, or if they think it looks fun.

Answer 2

Well, these children want to look good so they gain more social acceptance, which is a paramount goal for people like them. However, I don't really care about name brand clothing; I just don't want to go around looking very bad, like in literal rags or something of that sort. I agree though, that many children are spoiled and consider almost anything as rags.
I think that although parents don't like spending so much on their kids' clothes, they contribute to this trend: they are also spoiled and haven't learned to live with just the basics or at least just a few comforts in life. They think luxurious goods are always better than simple goods are; indeed, this may be true in terms of money, wealth, and prestige, but they are often bad because they often spoil users into trends of pickiness and vanity. I'm sure that since parents are humans, they are also social creatures and want to show their high standing (if they can afford such name brand items, then they have at least some standing), setting an example for their kids to follow.
All in all, though, these children follow their natural desires when wanting such name brand clothing that shows standing and allows them to show off and "fit in" with others their school environments; they probably become conscious of this name brand distinction whenever they become more social creatures, and that is usually when they reach adolescence.
As is demonstrated by their following these desires, though, these kids live in a corrupt culture that has no limits to individuals' wants and encourages people to get whatever they want to get. Such is the nature of capitalism: entrepeneurs want to sell their product, so they are encouraged to exploit consumers' internal demands.
In more civilized places, however, people have more control over these emotions and do not think they require name brand clothing.

Answer 3

Parents play a huge role in how MATERIALISTIC children are and become. If the parents are making a big issue over name brand clothing at an early age, then their children will grow up only wanting the best of the best. I have 3 kids and my oldest is 10 and so far she hasn't a clue of what "name brands" are. I would say that when children become conscious of their appearance which is usually when puberty starts is when they will become conscious of their clothing as long as they don't have their parents pointing it out at an early age. If someone has a 5 yr old child screaming for Donna Karen then there is something so wrong there, bad parenting skills. Children are a reflection of their parents.

Answer 4

Since the day both of my daughters {ages 2 and 5 months} were born, they have worn name brand clothing such as Baby Louis Vuitton and Rocawear and Burberry along with just cute little items that I may have got for like $1 {nighties and things like that} but that's how I was raised and I only want the best for my daughters; I think name brand clothing is a nice expense, but it isn't always a must. I think around age 9 or so kids start to realize different trends because they see the world in a media view because people are marketing things on TV and whatnot. Just dress your children as you wish and go from there. It doesn't matter what the latest fashion is... it is just a trend, but it doesn't hurt to spend extra money on it

Answer 5

I have a house full of teenagers (5) and I have found that the name only matters (mostly anyway) when it is plastered all over the front of a t-shirt. As far as jeans and such, as long as the look like what everyone else is wearing that month, then it doesnt really matter the actual name.

I have also found that the older they are, the less it matters. It seemed that when my son was in, lets say, the fifth or sixth grade that the brand name mattered more than now that he is in high school.

The only thing that they really complain about is name brand shoes. And to answer your question of "Do parents aid in this trend", yes, I think I did this. I always bought the slightly more expensive brands such as Nike or Kswiss because I feel that they last longer with the wear and tear of kids. Now my children say the same thing..oops.

Answer 6

My nine year old is starting to want designer labels, and I am trying to explain to him that wearing someone else's name on your butt, or wherever, just exposes you as a gauche and unsophisticated person. It is so sad to see young men and women who are at an age where they should be developing a personal sense of style, who go parading around with some nasty old designer's name across their chest, and toting some plastic Vuitton knockoff bag that they paid way too much for, and acting like they know they look good. They don't have the money for next month's rent, but they're shelling it out for some clothing designer's latest ad scam. Clothing companies pay rent for billboards. Why would anyone pay the clothing company to be a human billboard? Talk about going for the okey-doke!! Parents really should not allow their children to be made fools of in public. I tell my son, also, that many of those designer labels, like Nike, are companies that work little children half to death in other countries, and that we absolutely will not support exploitation of children by buying their products. My son is still torn by wanting what other kids at school think is cool, of course, but he is beginning to see what I mean.

Answer 7

I don't buy brand name clothing for my son...I buy good clothes but not for the label.
It is the parents that acts like they have to have name brand clothing not the child.

Now later on when a kid is like 14 and on worrys about brand name clothes cause i know i did but i don't know cause all it is is a label.

when you buy brand name clothing you are just paying double the price of it for that label whatever the name may be.

Answer 8

I think school plays a major part in trends...I work at a school where they wear uniforms but on some days they have "free days" and kids can wear whatever...some of the poorest kids get picked on or simply wear their uniforms just to fit in because their parents can't afford the brand names. Parents...remember that if all fails tomorrow, it will be hard for kids to understand why you can't afford something like before...

Answer 9

No, it is not. It is the parents who want to flaunt brands. Especially for children, who outgrow their clothes within a short time, there is no point buying expensive branded clothes.

Answer 10

my diagher was 8 when I had to start cutting out the Kmart lables and telling her I bought the closthes in the gap.
I admit I like a guggi or coach bag over the ones in Walmart, like everything else in life, it's all about balance. Try to teach them to like the good things and value them, but you can't have them all the time. Schools don't seem to wade into the discussion.

by the way, my daughter is now 23 and buys her own clotehs. She found TJMAXX and now wears the desgianre lables, but pays the Kamart privces, onece again, she found her blance. Keep finding the humor in the situation. It keeps you sane.