Oxymoron: Victoria Beckham and Budget Fashion

An Oxymoron is the use of two words, coupled together that really don’t belong together. Like when William Blake used the words “marriage hearse” in one of his poems.  Or when Victoria Beckham says she is working on a budget friendly fashion line.  Yes, seriously, last week Women’s Wear Daily  (WWD) reported that Mrs. Becks was moving to a mass-market fashion strategy for a new fashion endeavor.  The new line will bear the distinctly original label, wait for it, because you’ll never guess it:  Victoria by Victoria Beckham.  This allegedly affordable collection will offer retail prices from £350 to £600.  In US dollars, that is a price range of $562.00 to $964.00.  For those prices, I’d rather go over to Neiman Marcus, or better yet, Neiman Marcus Last Call and invest in some RM by Roland Mouret.  That’s because I think Ms. Beckham’s fashion are say we say, a “homage” to Mr. Mouret. I do think Ms. Beckham’s existing line has some great dresses in it for 2011, I just prefer Roland Mouret for the money.

For those “affordable” prices on Victoria “diffusion line” what can consumers expect? ‘These are the kind of dresses I’ve been searching for,’ Victoria told WWD. ‘The perfect little summer dress, something that was fun, something that was girly, something that was easy to wear, something that would take you from day through to night.’   Seems a bit pricey for that kind of simple dress look, doesn’t it?  But wait there’s more. The designer formerly known as Posh Spice is going to go after the fastest growing market in fashion today: the Plus size market. As she told WWD, “I’m opening these designs to women and girls of all different shapes and sizes, people who maybe want something less tight and clingy and structured.”  That means, the Victoria line will be cut a bit bigger.  I’m still not sure how that justifies the over $500.00 or £350 price tag.

Check out some of the comments from Marie Claire UK readers for more opinions on the price of Victoria Beckham’s diffusion line.  In the words of Marie Claire reader Cate Rosewell, “And £350 to £600 price tag is affordable to the ordinary woman in the street? Oh yah – which planet does Victoria Beckham live in? Hasn’t she heard there is a recession going on?” Spot on Cate. I think she’s on Planet Ka’ Ching.