High-end fashion is a topsy-turvy world.
Designer bags look like Ikea shopping bags and designer jeans like someone peed in them.
British-Italian designers Jordan Bowen and Luca Marchetto have introduced a pair of “stain stonewash jeans”, under their London-based JordanLuca label, that features “a stonewash stain on the crotch”, according to its online description.
It retails at an eye-popping US$811 (S$1,100) and, according to reports, has sold out on both JordanLuca’s website and across multiple platforms.
On social media, netizens have reacted to the jeans like a bull to a red flag.
“Why would I buy those when I can just pee in my pants? I mean... I guess I should thank them for saving me a trip to the restroom now. Yes, peeing on myself is cool,” noted a commentator on X, formerly Twitter.
Many also said they will just “piss on” themselves “for free”.
Some thought JordanLuca has created buzz for geriatric designer wear.
“I love them. Actually, these fit right into my new wardrobe at 68 years old. I can have accidents and be in style!” Ms Sherry Lovett wrote on JordanLuca’s Instagram page.
A commentator with the handle spaceshiptiger noted that her “grandpa does this himself, he got the swag within”.
The pee-stained fashion item made its first appearance at JordanLuca’s Fall/Winter 2023 Collection show during Milan Fashion Week in early 2023.
The brand has a cult following, registering a 15 per cent increase in sales between 2022 and 2023, crossing US$500,000, according to Vogue Business.
If it continues looking low for high-end design inspiration, it could catch up with bigger names in the fashion world such as Gucci and Balenciaga.
In 2020, Gucci caused a stir with its US$1,200 jeans designed with grass stains around the knees.
Luxury fashion brand Balenciaga caused a storm on the internet when it introduced a US$2,145 extra large tote bag in 2017 that looked like Ikea’s Frakta blue bags offered to shoppers at the furniture giant’s stores.
Balenciaga most recently offered the US$2,990 Antwerp tote bag, which bears a striking resemblance to British supermarket chain Iceland’s grocery bag sold at £1.75 (S$3).
