Apparently targeted at celebrities, the burnt design wear is receiving mixed reviews.
By Tosin Ayinde
Since its unveiling, Yomi
Casual’s Burnt design has not only gone viral, but has also sparked remarks
from style lovers who took a dim view of the design. The design drew inspiration
from the avant-garde school of thought, which dates back to 1920s. Avant garde,
which has since become a movement, denotes modernity or a deviation from the
norms. In the fashion world, the trio of Japanese designers: Yohji Yamamot, Rei Kawakubo, and Watanabe are regarded as norm breakers
and helped to reshape global fashion.
Notably, Yomi Casual is respected for his creative depth and
innovativeness but he became a subject of controversy when he launched his
much-talked about Burnt design, which style lovers feasted upon. They bemoaned
the Warri-born designer for overpricing and dollarising a naijamade apparel. They
dismissed the outfit as unrealistic. A worried Instagram fan said Yomi Casual
merely wanted to convert his creative flaw to an ostentatious wear, thereby
describing himself as Nigeria’s Balenciaga and Kanye West, who have both been
linked with ridiculously overpriced apparels.
When Yomi Casual’s white burnt shirt surfaced on his
Instagram page, critics were more concerned about the price tag of $8,900 (₦7miliion), than the norm-breaking creativity
that informed the creative design. The post attracted plaudits and brickbat
from critics. While some appreciated and lauded its creativity, many others had
huge doubt, saying the outfit belies the alarming monetary values placed on it.
Netizens called out the CEO OF Yomi Casual, saying it was
just a mere publicity stunt. Now, fans are anxiously waiting to see the first
celebrity to rock the outfit. It comes as a surprise that the rave of the
moment, Ololade Mr. Money is yet to show off the burnt outfit, or why Nigerian
celebrities are reluctant to have a share of this smashing outfit to show off
their wealth like they always do. Or could it be that they have also been hit
by the current economic times? Nigerians are waiting!
One of Yomi Casual’s Burnt outfits costs about ₦3.8million and on his post on
Instagram, the fashion designer urged his fans to share it to their favourite celebrities.
Rather than do as urged, trust Nigerians, netizens, ignoring Yomi Casual’s
artistry and creativity, ripped the design to pieces. A fan, who goes by Dr.rashelnigeria_store, said:
“If your apprentice burn cloth, talk say na mistake no be say you go turn am to
exclusively made fashion for ₦5.9m. How much is
original iron and white shirt?” Glitz_farms added: “Just wake up and be writing
price because you use fire burn white shirt.” Tena_naturalbeauty, was sanguine,
as she wrote: “If this man successfully sells the clothes to anyone then I’ll
come to a conclusion that truly no matter your price there’s a customer for you…just
do your marketing right.”
The design has continued to be the subject of debate and
controversies in fashion circles. But quite frankly, most critics fail to understand
that Yomi Casual’s Burnt outfit is technically targeting high-end celebrity
consumers whose taste for luxury, ostentation, and exclusivity is undeniable.
They also underestimate the economic behaviour of celebrities whose spending habit
is motivated by what is not apparent to, well, people who are not celebrities.
Celebrities focus on status symbols, have the need to be validated.
American actor, Will Smith, once said: “Black people spend too much money we
don’t have to impress people we don’t even like.” Perhaps, Yomi Casual’s burnt
outfit is riding on the psychology of celebrity spending.
Tosin Ayinde is the managing editor
of meiza.ng.
Ayodelé is a Lagos-based journalist and the Content and Editorial Coordinator at Meiza. All around the megacity, I am steering diverse lifestyle magazine audiences with ingenious hacks and insights that spur fast, informed decisions in their busy lives.
