The term designer label refers to clothing, luxury automobile manufacturers and other personal accessory items sold under an often prestigious marque which is commonly named after a designer, founder, or a location-like where the company was founded (such as BMW). The term is most often applied to luxury goods. While members of the

upper middle class In sociology, the upper middle class is the social group constituted by higher status members of the middle class. This is in contrast to the term ''lower middle class'', which is used for the group at the opposite end of the middle-class strat ...

, or the

mass affluent In marketing and financial services, mass affluent and emerging affluent are the high end of the mass market, or individuals with US$100,000 to US$1,000,000 of liquid financial assets plus an annual household income over US$75,000. Mass affluent ...

, are perhaps the most commonly targeted customers of these designer labels, some marquees—such as Cartier,

Rolex Rolex SA () is a British-founded Swiss watch designer and manufacturer based in Geneva, Switzerland. Founded in 1905 as ''Wilsdorf and Davis'' by Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis in London, the company registered ''Rolex'' as the brand name of ...

, Montblanc and the haute couture — tend to a wealthier customer base. But almost every designer brand has merchandise that the middle-class wouldn't normally be able to afford, such as exotic skins, furs and hides, limited edition pieces, or things simply priced higher. Designer label companies use their smaller and cheaper merchandise, aimed at the middle class, such as wallets, fashion jewellery, key-rings and small accessories, to make the majority of their income, whilst the more expensive pieces such as haute couture, high jewellery, hand-bags, shoes and even furnishings are usually reserved for the wealthier upper-class clientele. Many big designer labels focus on haute couture and

marketing Marketing is the process of exploring, creating, and delivering value to meet the needs of a target market in terms of goods and services; potentially including selection of a target audience; selection of certain attributes or themes to emph ...

while licensing the production of their cheaper merchandise to others. In the eyewear industry for example brands like

Burberry Burberry is a British luxury fashion house established in 1856 by Thomas Burberry headquartered in London, England. It currently designs and distributes ready to wear, including trench coats (for which it is most famous), leather accessorie ...

, Chanel,

Armani Giorgio Armani S.p.A. (), commonly known as Armani, is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in Milan by Giorgio Armani which designs, manufactures, distributes and retails haute couture, ready-to-wear, leather goods, shoes, accessories, and ...

and Prada license their brand names to market leaders like

Luxottica Luxottica Group S.p.A. is an Italian eyewear conglomerate and the world's largest company in the eyewear industry. It is based in Milan, Italy. Luxottica is a vertically integrated company, which has been described as a monopoly—it designs, ma ...

. Many department stores themselves may be considered designer labels, such as

Neiman Marcus Neiman Marcus Group, Inc. is an American integrated luxury retailer headquartered in Dallas, Texas, which owns Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, Horchow, and Last Call. Since September 2021, NMG has been owned by a group of investment compani ...

, Harrods, David Jones and

Daimaru is a Japanese department store chain, principally located in the Kansai region of Japan. The chain is operated by Daimaru Matsuzakaya Department Stores, a subsidiary of J. Front Retailing. At one time Daimaru was an independent company, , he ...

. Designer labels are not only restricted to the

fashion design Fashion design is the art of applying design, aesthetics, clothing construction and natural beauty to clothing and its accessories. It is influenced by culture and different trends, and has varied over time and place. "A fashion designer creates ...

industry. Many car and motorcycle companies such as

Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...

Harley-Davidson Harley-Davidson, Inc. (H-D, or simply Harley) is an American motorcycle manufacturer headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1903, it is one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depressi ...

and

Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...

are regarded as designer labels. These companies make their vehicles to a higher standard than the average manufacturers and many other attributes such leather used in the upholstery, woodwork and paneling, high levels of technology, extra safety and speed are employed to make for a better product. These vehicles are also in high demand all over the world, and waiting lists may be applied to some models, such as the

Rolls-Royce Phantom Rolls-Royce has used the Phantom name on full-sized luxury cars over the past century: *Rolls-Royce Phantom I, 1925–1931 *Rolls-Royce Phantom II, 1929–1936 *Rolls-Royce Phantom III, 1936–1939 *Rolls-Royce Phantom IV, 1950&ndash ...

and the

Bugatti Veyron The Bugatti Veyron EB 16.4 is a mid-engine sports car, designed and developed in Germany by the Volkswagen Group and Bugatti and manufactured in Molsheim, France, by French automobile manufacturer Bugatti. It was named after the racing driver P ...

. Many people consider designer labels to be a status symbol. Some research indicates that products with designer labels on them are perceived as higher in quality and fashionability than the same products without designer labels. Other studies show evidence that brand names do influence consumers perception of price, but not of quality of the products. The relationship between consumer products and social status is highly debated.

List

Arc'teryx Arc'teryx is a Canadian high-end design company specializing in outdoor apparel and equipment headquartered in North Vancouver, Canada. It focuses on technical apparel for mountaineering and Alpine sports, including related accessories. The com ...

* Attolini *

Ted Baker Ted Baker is a British high-street clothing retail company known for suits, shirts, and dresses. It was founded in 1988 in Glasgow, Scotland. The company is owned by Authentic Brands Group, after its £211 million acquisition in October 2022. T ...

Manolo Blahnik Manuel "Manolo" Blahnik Rodríguez (; born 27 November 1942) is a Spanish fashion designer and founder of the eponymous high-end shoe brand. Biography Blahnik was born in Santa Cruz de la Palma, in the Canary Islands (Spain), to a Czech father ...

Thom Browne Thom Browne (born September 27, 1965) is an American fashion designer. He is the founder and head of design for Thom Browne, a luxury fashion brand based in New York City. Browne debuted his womenswear collection in 2014. Early life and education ...

Hugo Boss Hugo Boss AG, often styled as BOSS, is a luxury fashion house headquartered in Metzingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The company sells clothing, accessories, footwear, and fragrances. Hugo Boss is one of the largest German clothing companies, ...

Tory Burch Tory Burch (née Robinson; born June 17, 1966) is an American fashion designer, businesswoman, and philanthropist. She is the Executive Chairman and Chief Creative Officer of her own brand, Tory Burch LLC. She was listed as the 88th most powerf ...

* Canali * Cavalli * Chanel * Charles & Keith * Kenneth Cole *

Comme des Garçons Comme des Garçons (also known as CDG) is a Japanese fashion label based in Paris that was created and led by Rei Kawakubo. Its French flagship store is located in Paris. This label owns a world-wide store chain featuring various lines of pro ...

Brunello Cucinelli Brunello Cucinelli (; born 3 September 1953 in Castel Rigone) is an Italian luxury creative director and the chief executive of his eponymous made in Italy brand, Brunello Cucinelli. He donates 20% of his profits through the Brunello Cucine ...

* Capri **

Jimmy Choo Datuk Jimmy Choo Back from ...

Michael Kors Michael David Kors (born Karl Anderson Jr. August 9, 1959) is an American fashion designer. He is the chief creative officer of his brand, Michael Kors, which sells men's and women's ready-to-wear, accessories, watches, jewelry, footwear, and f ...

Versace Gianni Versace S.r.l. (), usually referred to as Versace ( ), is an Italian luxury fashion company founded by Gianni Versace in 1978 known for flashy prints and bright colors. The company produces Italian-made ready-to-wear and accessories, as ...

** Versus *

Dolce & Gabbana Dolce & Gabbana (), also known by initials D&G, is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in 1985 in Legnano by Italian designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. The house specializes in ready-to-wear, handbags, accessories, and cosmet ...

* Escada * Etro * Salvatore Ferragamo S.p.A., Ferragamo * Gianfranco Ferré, Ferré * Fiorucci * Tom Ford * Diane von Fürstenberg * Furla * Jean Paul Gaultier * Goyard * Hermès * Tommy Hilfiger (company), Tommy Hilfiger * Isaia * Marc Jacobs * Betsey Johnson * Donna Karan * Calvin Klein (fashion house), Calvin Klein * Kiton * Christian Lacroix, Lacroix * Lacoste * Karl Lagerfeld * Helmut Lang (fashion brand), Helmut Lang * Lanvin (company), Lanvin * Guy Laroche * Lardini * Ralph Lauren Corporation, Ralph Lauren * Judith Leiber * Nanette Lepore * Monique Lhuillier * Phillip Lim * Dan Liu * Christian Louboutin * Steve Madden (company), Steve Madden * Tomas Maier * Léo Marciano * Maison Margiela * Lana Marks * Stella McCartney * Issey Miyake * Missoni * Moschino * Mouawad * Thierry Mugler * Mulberry (company), Mulberry * Maria Pinto (fashion designer), Maria Pinto * Zac Posen * Prada ** Miu Miu * Emilio Pucci * Billy Reid (fashion designer), Billy Reid * Oscar de la Renta * Sergio Rossi * Sonia Rykiel * Elie Saab * Sabyasachi Mukherjee, SabyaSachi * Proenza Schouler * Paul Smith (fashion designer), Paul Smith * Kate Spade New York, Kate Spade * Anna Sui * Elie Tahari * Tarun Tahiliani, Tahiliani * Tiffany & Co. * Philip Treacy * Trussardi * Valentino (fashion house), Valentino * Giambattista Valli * John Varvatos (company), John Varvatos * Kering ** Gucci ** Yves Saint Laurent (brand), Yves Saint Laurent ** Boucheron ** Bottega Veneta ** Balenciaga ** Alexander McQueen (brand), Alexander McQueen ** Brioni (brand), Brioni ** Girard-Perregaux ** Qeelin ** Pomellato ** Christopher Kane ** Ulysse Nardin * LVMH ** Celine (brand), Celine ** Dior ** Fendi ** Givenchy ** Loro Piana ** Louis Vuitton * OTB Group, OTB ** Marni (fashion house), Marni ** Viktor & Rolf * Puig (company), Puig ** Carolina Herrera ** Paco Rabanne * E. Marinella * Alexander Wang (designer), Alexander Wang * Vera Wang * Vivienne Westwood * Jason Wu * Wooyoungmi * Yohji Yamamoto * Giuseppe Zanotti * Zegna

References

{{reflist Goods (economics) Luxury brands, *