Why Supreme should or should not be expensive?

There are numerous brands present in the market today when it comes to the
field of fashion. As time passes by, people get more conscious about how they wear
and look. Many people are now paying attention to what kind of clothes, bags, and
accessories they wear. Some are particular to the brands and make sure that they wear
a brand that they will be proud of. There are local brands that are affordable for the
people but there are also international brands that are high-priced. 

         One of the popular brands when it comes to fashion is Supreme. The brand has a
skateboarding and hip-hop image and focuses on youth culture in general. It is an
American skateboarding lifestyle brand created in New York City in 1994 (Sullivan,
2017). It began as a small store but it has now become a billion-dollar company. Their
items usually cost more than a hundred dollars which are really expensive for the
consumers. Even this is the case, people still continuously patronize and support their
products. I personally think that Supreme deserves to be high-priced because of the
extensive effort they put into enhancing the image of their brand. They make sure that
they deliver value to their customers through the extraordinary vibe that their products
radiate. I also think that one of the reasons for their success is because they are
market-oriented. Prof. Dr. Manfred Kirchgeorg mentioned in the video that customer
orientation is the key to success. They really understand how the customers think and
act. This is evident in how they only release limited stocks of their products. It is
because having limited releases gives hype to the people and makes them feel that
they possess something exclusive that feeds their esteem needs. This marketing
strategy helps their products to be in high demand since they make people drool with
their quality products and limited releases. Consumers are willing to take measures to
get one of the limited items even it is expensive because it satisfies their needs and
wants when it comes to fashion. People are willing to buy the product event it cost a lot
because they think that its personal value equation is positive or they receive more
benefits from it. Another reason why they release only small quantities of their products
is because they first test if the product will be supported by the customers. Once the
products became sold out, it gives them the go signal to increase the price compared to
the original one. There was once an instance that a pair of shoes from their brand was
worn by Kanye West, a popular personality, then people became interested that caused
the price to double (Houston & Fennell, 2021). It means that the price of an item will not
be too much of a concern to a willing customer that really wants to purchase a certain
product. With that, we can say that Supreme focuses on its psychographic
goals which deal with the personal desires, values, emotions, interests, and lifestyle
choices of the customers (Revella, n.d.). It was mentioned in the video that it starts with
awareness then image, preference, purchase, and eventually, satisfaction. Supreme
makes sure that the consumers are aware of their brand because they keep on making
or doing something that will attract people’s attention. With their strategies, they are
able to build a good image for their brand. Their excellent image in the eyes of
customers gives them a competitive advantage in the market because people prefer
their brand if they want to achieve a hype vibe. In that sense, people purchase or

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support their products even they are expensive. It is because they bring satisfaction to
the consumers especially when it comes to their fashion and esteem needs. 

         To conclude, it is just deserving for Supreme to have their products high-priced
because of the extraordinary value that they give to the customers through their
products. People will know if something will be worth their penny so if they willingly
support Supreme even with its shocking price, it means that it provides them something
that they believe is equivalent to their money. Indeed, they are effective and efficient in
achieving their goals through their excellent market orientation that enhances their
brand’s image to a great level. They utilize the power of marketing not just through
advertisements but also through understanding how consumers think which made them
successfully gain the support of their target market.

References:

Houston, J. & Fennell, N. (2021, February 08). How Supreme went from a small
skateboarding store to a billion-dollar streetwear company.
https://www.businessinsider.com/supreme-fashion-brand-so-expensive-viral-
skateboarding-2019-5
Revella, A. (n.d.). Psychographics and personas: how to get to the truth about why
people buy. https://www.hotjar.com/blog/psychographics-in-marketing/
Sullivan, R. (2017). Charting the Rise of Supreme, From Cult Skate Shop to Fashion
Superpower. https://www.vogue.com/article/history-of-supreme-skate-clothing-
brand.