There are 2 kinds of brand buyers. 1: those who buy from brands because they like the quality and stuff. 2: those who just want to show off.

I know you are talking about #2. Well they don’t buy clothes from brands, they buy the tags. The tags of hundreds of dollars. Just like people are mad for yeezy’s. Just because it’s expensive. I am sure no one would have bought them if they were like 60 dollar. And the ‘‘supreme’ shirt. They don’t pay a thousand dollars for a white shirt because it’s comfortable or cool. They just want to show that they bought a thousand dollars shirt. I mean it probably takes $5 for them to make that shirt or even less. But some people are still gonna pay a thousand dollars.

I don’t know why they don’t buy some really cool and not so expensive clothes. There are a lot of good brands out there who sell good quality clothes at reasonable price. But as I said, those douchebags want the tags ,not the clothes.

There are already some good answers! I hope that I can be of some help as well?

I’ll explain why I like certain branded clothes:

1. Fit! Non-branded (or sometimes worse, cheap-branded—i.e. Forever 21, H&M and the like) NEVER have clothes that fit me. I have an hourglass figure, which is a shape almost never catered to by any cheap brand. Massive alterations are usually needed in order to make things look good on me, and why am I going to spend the time altering them if they’re just going to wear thin or fall apart anyway? However, using Guess as an example, branded clothes cater to other shapes: I virtually never need to do a permanent alteration on their items because they’re made for a different shape. Some of their dresses provide enough support in the bust that I don’t even have to wear a bra despite my DD breasts, and if I do need a bra I can often simply tack or safety pin any fabric folds for a better fit. The quality of the fabric and construction of the piece make spending the time on these alterations worth it, especially if the clothes were bought on sale or from a second-hand shop (whether that be a thrift shop or consignment store).
2. Quality: I touched on this above. (^-^*) The quality of branded clothes is often superior to non-branded and cheap-branded clothes, which 1. makes them worth spending the time altering if needed, and 2. means that they’ll last longer regardless. I’m a person who gets sentimentally attached to my clothes: they’re my things, they support me, I wear them because I love them. Whoever wants a shirt or favourite pair of shorts to fall apart? (I’m not a fast-fashion addict with a need for a high turnover in my closet—I buy what I wear because I love what I wear and I want them to last.) Said clothes lasting longer also makes them a much, much better investment in the long run because they work out to be more inexpensive than constantly buying crappy stuff that fades, wears thin or falls apart soon after wearing.*
   
   Good quality also means that if I ever do get bored of or start disliking a particular item I can easily pass it on to someone else or make something new out of it instead of just throwing it out.
   
   *A good example of this is the American Eagle top I bought in university: I never buy this brand. I resented it most of my high school and university life because I never understood the brand’s popularity when it was a brand that was known for its cheap construction. But I loved this one crop top. The strap popped off the first time I wore it. Lucky I usually have a sewing kit on me because I had to use it right there in the pub with the shirt on backwards to fix it. I’ve also heard countless times from people wearing non-branded clothing that this sort of quick rendering of clothes unwearable is extremely common. It doesn’t always happen—I wear non-branded stuff as well, myself—but it does take an eye for fabric and construction quality and not just an eye for a cheap price tag. (Other brands I’ve had this happen to or heard this commonly happens to are Forever 21, H&M, American Apparel, Urban Outfitters, etc. Some people might argue that these are not actually considered “brands”, but considering the weight their names and images have carried here I’m considering them as such. I just consider them cheap ones as opposed to brands like Guess and Diesel or designer brands like LV and Armani. Perhaps I should call them “offbrand” instead, but then they could get confused with non-branded stuff. Hmmm… Things to think about. What makes a brand, and is everybody here talking about the same thing when they use the term?)
3. Design. I like what I like, and if I see something I like by a brand I watch that brand to see how often they put out stuff like it. If they consistently carry stuff I like that fits me—stuff that matches my own personal image, essentially (which fluctuates xD;; but I hope you get my point)—then I become a loyal follower and buy what I can when I need it when I can. If a brand stops putting out stuff I like I just drop them, but maybe, if I liked their fit and construction well enough, keep an eye out for if they return to the original style I discovered them through.
4. Ethics. Many brands make it easier to track the ethics of how they make their items, who makes them, environmental impacts, etc. Yes, some brands are late to showing these impacts, but they’re starting to show them. But a reeeally simple way to take it down, just from a “what are workers paid?” point of view:
   
   A $5 or $10 t-shirt means the worker who made that is earning pretty much nothing. A $20 or $30 t-shirt? Depends on the quality, but in general the worker is probably earning much more than the one making the $5 and $10 t-shirts. Once you get to $40 or $50+ you can be reasonably assured that the worker is getting a fair wage, at least compared to the other two. It’s not a guarantee, but it’s a measure that some people use to determine what’s worth the labour and what’s not.
   
   I’ll let you in on a secret: making clothing can be expensive. It’s certainly usually a lot more expensive than other people (especially non-sewers) think it is. Even with bulk fabric discounts that brands can get—whether those discounts are a fair price or not is another story—there is still the cost of labour and any other trims or detailing to consider. There’s a reason “materials + labour (time + effort) + markup (to actually, y’know, make a profit) = price” is how prices are worked out.
   
   Sure, I could make my own t-shirt out of fabric I have lying around, but there are still other costs involved. Let’s make it easy and say it took one hour to make a t-shirt with a few small embellishments. Minimum wage here is $12/hour. Even if we list the cost of the materials as $0 (which it technically isn’t, since I did buy everything at one time) the costs add up like this: 0 + 12 + 2 = 14. That’s $14 for a t-shirt that I’m only making $2 off of at the end of the day. There’s no way I could eat off of that yet many people would say “oh, I can find cheaper at X store”. Those same people would balk at a (slightly) more fair pricing of said t-shirt: 7 + 15 + 5 = 27. $7 for materials, $15/h (which still isn’t enough to live off of in this city, but I digress), $5 profit. Still a paltry profit, but much more manageable than the $2 or -$ that people expect. (I’d expect such a shirt to be at least $30 or $40, if I’m being honest, because an hour on a t-shirt? The detailing’s probably done by hand or is otherwise intricate enough to require more skill than a plain shirt sewing with just a machine.) People online have information on what the average income and cost of living is in different places that are known for their fashion factories, so, to anyone in doubt: it might be worth a search to see how many are paid extremely unfairly because so many consumers go “why not buy cheaper clothes?”
   
   Tl;dr Not all “pricey” clothes are pricey because of a 200% markup.
5. Okay, yes. There’s some thrill of feeling like you’re “part of a group”, I’ll admit. But doesn’t that go for everyone who puts some thought into what they wear, regardless of whether they buy brands or not? It’s how certain scenes and subfashions form: we can identify each other based on what we’re wearing with relative accuracy. Even people who firmly adhere to the principle of buying nothing branded “because who spends so much on clothes?!”* have their own look and group mentality, even if it’s as shallow as sneering at people who buy branded clothes when it comes up in conversation. (*Yes, I’ve actually heard this in conversation.) If I see someone in a shirt featuring a band I like or a subfashion I like I’ll feel a thrill of excitement and be more likely to approach the person because of the perceived similar interest. (I know this isn’t done everywhere in the world, but here it’s generally okay to approach someone to say something like “Cute bag!”, “Awesome shoes!” or “Hey, I love that band!” I know some people elsewhere may find that weird, but it’s one of the things about this city that keeps me living here. It’s hard enough to meet people and make friends as it is, so why not use things like fashion as a jumping-off point in the right contexts?)

I buy both branded and non-branded stuff, but considering I rarely buy things anyway…most of it’s ended up being brands. xD;; I have too little money to invest in anything that isn’t going to last me a decent amount of time and look good on me. I may buy it in a thrift shop, I may buy it in store or online on sale, I may *gasp!* buy it full-price every now and then if it’s selling out and I really, really want and love it, but to me a sum of all of the above is paramount. I feel gross buying stuff I know won’t last or fit me well, and I feel sick thinking about the places that are well-known to have poor ethics regarding the treatment of their workers. I don’t always have time or effort to make stuff myself.

Now, other people… Yeah. As a lot of others have said, many people buy just for the price tag, or “to look cool” or like they have money (whether they do or don’t). But I hope my perspective helps in understanding that sometimes people put a lot of thought into which brands they buy, why they buy them, and what “brand” even means (i.e. whether it’s exclusively designer, anything with its own storefront, even just a brand whose name and image become popular and stuck… Colloquially it definitely seems to vary.).

Personally, I think saving’s a lost art and that this is part of why this discussion is even being had. The amount of people who have insulted me for wearing brands like Guess who didn’t understand I had hardly any money to spare? I don’t even want to think about how many there were. If I wanted something bad enough I made the effort to save up for it, and even kept a savings jar specifically for clothes, books and other things (including treats like ice cream and cereal), and cut out every other expense that wasn’t necessary. We all have our things we like and spend money on: I has a $20/week food budget, I had friends who spent $50 on food alone and a $20/week coffee habit besides. Interestingly enough I dropped most of those friends because of their jabs at me “looking expensive” and “spending so much money” even though they earned more than I did and spent more than I did. (They never seemed to consider how many were thrifted or otherwise second-hand?) Even the people who spent a ton on drinks and partying every other weekend sometimes got on my case, and I could only ever shrug and point out that, hey, if they wanted to spend their money on alcohol and cover charges that was fine, but to leave me alone because I chose to spend my money elsewhere. Not everybody’s willing or able to make the same effort. Totally understandable. But to get on someone’s case when you don’t know what they’ve done to get it? That…I don’t understand.

Whew. That was a lot longer than I thought it would be! Simple question, but I hope this answers it. :)

Branded clothes can be a status symbol for many. For example, Nike may sell one pair of shoes for $150 while New Balance sells a pair of shoes that has better arch support and wider widths available for a total of $75. People will buy the pair of shoes from Nike because Nike shoes cost more and people want to look like they’re made of money. That’s why people wear branded clothes.

Personally, I might start making my own clothes sometime soon. I’ve picked up skills with the sewing machine and I could make clothes that actually fit me for far less than what I’d pay for something from Kohl’s. I can probably make three shirts for 1/5 the price of what one shirt would cost me from Kohl’s, and it wouldn’t be a tall size, which I need.

Well such a good question..

Honestly Speaking..

These all brands and all are just a way to show how Swagger you can be and how you can put up in front of the Damn society and all stuffs..

But personally I will tell only one thing and that is Clothes are clothes , doesn't matter They are branded or Unbranded..

A person should be good from Heart and well educated to know the Right thing in Right path..

Clothes are just to cover up the body of the Person but Education covers the Backwardness of the Society and helps them to cover up from other things too like Unemployment,Illiteracy,etc..

So Be a Man with class and be that person who should be known by his Education not by his dumb Branded Clothes..

Hi Anushka, let me ask you a simple question. If you were to buy a car, what car would you buy.Your answer would be Maruti, Hyundai, Toyota or any other. Now why would you chose one over the other. The logic is simple, you have knowledge about the brand, and so you are confidently making a choice.

If you had loads of money, then you would look at Mercedes, Audi, Lexus, BMW. Here's your answer, you want to make a statement to the world that you have arrived in your life. You have achieved something in life and this is the measure of it.

Success is measured by materialistic things and so people like to flaunt. So these people will never buy run- of-the-mill brands that 80% of the population would wear. They will spend 10-20 times more for a torn pair of jeans If it's from A/X Armani Xchange, CK, JLo. They will not go in for local, most common brand.

My advice is be a smart buyer. Pick up big brands when they are on sale. Normally they are sold at 50-70% less, depending on the brand and time of the year.

Wear clothes that are neutral, where people can't judge you by its brand. Avoid buying fake branded clothes, they look cheap and also sends the wrong signals to people.

Hope you got your answer.

For many reasons:

Consistency

Once you know a designer’s style, then you’ll have a pretty good idea how each of the newest styles will fit. You’ll also have a sense of the style they aim for. If the preppy Ralph Lauren Polo style appeals to you, then it’s easy to shop for those styles at most major department stores. Which brings us to our next point:

Availability

When you fall in love with a designer’s line, and you know that your local retail store carries it, then finding new styles is easy. Just drive over to the store and look at the displays. In many cases, even if the styles aren’t available in the stores themselves, they can be ordered online.

Name Recognition

There’s a social status conferred upon those who wear designer brands. Whether or not you agree with this, many people can visually identify certain designer brands and admire those who wear them well.

Workmanship

Although this is not always the case, many designers pride themselves on higher quality garments. I know of several brands that I can depend on for making clothing that is not only stylish but also, when the proper care is taken, long-lasting.

Style

Branded clothing is associated with specific styles. Here’s a photo of fashion model Claudia Schiffer. She’s modeled for Chanel, Mango and many other brands. If anyone has style, Claudia Schiffer has it in spades.

… and so does Gigi Hadid:

I don’t wear Branded Clothes nowadays. Yes, I used to buy branded shoes & clothes till 2012. I would reply your question in three parts.

People who are Brand savvy - known what benefits the Brand offers

Here i would definitely narrate the story of Laxmipati Sarees (ladies ethnic wear) from Surat - Gujarat who have pattented few processes of Fabric and quality of fabric they use are standard set of offerings from house of Laxmipati Sarees. From Surat - Gujarat, you can find many such brands in ladies wear.

People who are obssessed with Brand Name - don’t know much about Brand but wearing it for public apperance & for Status symbol only.

People who are influenced or jealous from their network friends. Out of Jealousy they wear and try to prove their wealth amongst Network friends.

Brands from INDIAN Market - midrange brands do offer uniqueness and they have certain guidelines of standard material offering. High range / Luxury Brands do follow guidelines but they are not really worth what they charge in India. You can easily compare quality of clothing from INDIAN Market & DUBAI / GULF market of same Brands. Quality standards are different in both the markets and rates are almost same with or without little difference.

They think it marks them as branded.

They think they are superior and rich.

They think they look damn attractive wearing a brand …..but does wearing a branded material really means comfort.

Wearing branded may asure the quality and durability but that doesn't really mean that wearing branded would be the only option. Just wear what's comfortable and affordable. As it is said, “Have a smart choice, in the world of fools”.

Here's a time table for the average branded person out there;)

Also when the originals are not enough, this is what happens….

this creativity is height….

Firstly, clothing brands represent the person that wears them. If you are an activist, you would not be wearing the Capucines BB from LV or if you claim casual as your bible of fashion you are not hitting streets with the latest gala dress of BCBG.

Brands style is dictated by haute couture and designers each year. Mainstream brands copy them in worst or better quality and spread them throughout influencers, ads, windows and magazines across the countries in the right channels approaching their “activist” or “sporty” personas.

We buy them, wear them or put them in our b-day wish list because we want to have that specific tag on the dress, boots or sneakers we will proudly be wearing.

It is a symbol, a status we claim. At the end, it would not be fun if we all wear the same… ;)

Brands are signals of quality. Products without or with unknown brands do not signal anything, so it is up to the - uninitiated - user to make a value guess… Products with brand names readily signal a value estimate to the user. Brands are especially valued in transitional societies, where there is a confusion about value/price parity. Of course, most brands take advantage of this phenomena and price themselves over the real treshold just so that later they can lure customer in with deals, specials, bundles.

By the way, in this post I see that almost every response took the word ‘brand’ as a positive, quality attribute. Although we all know lousy brands.

I’m guessing there is many reasons as there are brands of clothing. I do not wear any clothing just for the logo, I don’t buy Nike T-shirts that have the big swoosh on them, I don’t wear Adidas shoes for the three stripes.

I wear clothes that fit my body and my lifestyle. And I tend to be fairly brand loyal. So, for example, most of my button down shirts are made by Ariat. Ariat got their name from the last half of secretary, considered by many of the greatest racehorse ever.

I wear western boots most of the time, I wear Cinch jeans, either bronze or silver label, and I wear a western style hat.

If I’m wearing sneakers, they will be New Balance, almost all the time. New Balance is one of the few companies that still makes some of their sneakers in America, but they are expensive, at least compared to the ones made overseas. I have one pair of American made New Balance that I’ve owned for about eight years. I walk about 4 miles every morning, and I wear them. The ones I have that were made overseas I reserved for lawn care. I don’t mind stepping in dog poop in my backyard wearing sneakers made overseas.

Before I moved to Texas six years ago, I used to wear Harley Davidson brand of jeans. They were probably made by Levi’s, although the coin pocket was on the left pocket. When I got here, I dated a woman who good-naturedly made fun of my “old man jeans”, so I switched over to Cinch.

I have two Carhart jacket for the winter time and, while I have multiple other jackets, I tend to favor the Carhart. Something about the way they are cut just feels comfortable.

I own many multiple Harley Davidson T-shirts, they’re not necessarily a brand of clothing but they are a brand of lifestyle. If I’m not wearing a Harley T-shirt, I am probably wearing one with a political message or from either where I used to work or where one of my kids went to school.

Today I went to one of the popular shopping hubs [Non branded] in Mumbai, with one good friend. Since I shopped with my first official salary, I was really excited and spent wholeheartedly, I would have never done with my parents' money. Out of my exhilaration after shopping, I said, "Its good that I withdrew only Rs.2,700 to splurge because had I withdrawn more money I would have spent it entirely, repenting the expenses later". My friend replied,"huh, it doesn't matter to me since I am used to spend around Rs. 10,000 in a single visit to malls". I remained quiet and went into contemplation mode, thinking if it is worth spending so much on trivial things.

The elementary necessity of clothes is to cover our body but in today's world, we have to look presentable too, which I too feel, is necessary. Now my dilemma is, if we are getting good stuff at a lower price, why do we chase brands and why we cannot accept people wearing non branded things, even if they look actually good in non branded products. I think that by buying from local shops, we can help small businessmen, and people working as assistants in those shops, earn. This would help in a somewhat uniform distribution of income in our country

Moreover, by purchasing from malls, we are only making rich owners of the malls richer, who distribute a very small portion of the revenues among their staffs.
If we are getting same thing at non branded shops, why are we so enslaved by brands to throw money, just to help rich become richer?
Why this world is so mad about brands?
What extra psychological gratification do girls achieve in getting tops from a showroom of Mango even if it is totally possible to get its replica at lower price from a reputed non branded shop?
In a county like India, where too many people die out of hunger, is it justifiable for people to go for such actions?
This is just my opinion and I don't intend to comment on anybody's lifestyle but I would appreciate others' views on this topic so that I can expand my arena of thoughts.
Please share your views to enlighten me to understand this complex Indian behavior.

There’s a subtle psychological alchemy in how name brand clothes impact our self-perception and social identity. It’s not just about the fabric or the design—brand names carry an aura of status, quality, and often, a promise of belonging. When someone dons a luxury label, it can act as a confidence boost, a tactile reminder of social recognition. This phenomenon, deeply rooted in consumer psychology, operates on both conscious and subconscious levels. Brands like Gucci, Louis Vuitton, or even emerging designer names imbue wearers with a sense of distinction and exclusivity—almost like wearing a badge that signals one’s alignment with a certain lifestyle or set of values.

Yet, this need to “feel good” through branding is complex. It’s a mix of aspirational identity, peer validation, and even a bit of nostalgia—think of the way vintage labels evoke personal memories or cultural narratives. There’s also an economic angle: strong brand names are a form of collateral in the marketplace, providing an assurance of quality that’s hard to replicate with generic alternatives. And while critics argue that this trend is superficial, it’s undeniable that human psychology craves symbols that validate our sense of self-worth. Ultimately, wearing name brand clothes becomes more than a fashion statement—it’s an emotional investment, a way to align one’s self-image with ideals of success, creativity, and belonging. Whether driven by genuine appreciation for craftsmanship or the desire for social affirmation, this behavior underscores how deeply intertwined our identities are with the symbols we choose to display.

No, I don’t think people who are against wearing branded clothes are wrong. I think that everyone has their own personal style and preference, and that there is no “right” or “wrong” way to dress. Some people prefer to wear designer or expensive clothes as a way to express their personal style, while others may prefer to focus on more affordable or vintage pieces. There is no correct answer - it’s all about what makes you feel comfortable and confident in your own skin.

Because people are obsessed with status symbol stuff, and that is status symbol stuff you can wear. It is not going to help you much to get respect from people in general or attention from the opposite gender though. That has much more to do with how attractive you look and the way in which you conduct yourself. Other people who are superficially status obsessed and have the attitude of expensive=good will be impressed with you though I suppose. When I was driving a fancy car I got a good bit of superficial attention from.. let’s call them “fans”.

You can look just as nice or nicer though if you just put a bit of time into trying on different clothes, checking how those look on ya and buying stuff that’s on sale, high quality and off brand. Or you can waste your time and labor on buying shit that costs 10x as much and looks exactly the same except for the logo.