As the front man for the Stooges,

作為丑角合唱團的先鋒，

his live performances were certifiably insane.

他現場表演非常瘋狂。

He would flail around on the ground,

他會趴在地上，

stage dive, and bleed throughout the course of a single show.

向台下觀眾群跳，並會流著血表演。

Understandably, this performance style caused a lot of friction,

可以理解，這種表演風格勢必造成很大的摩擦，

and as a result, the jeans he wore on stage night after night developed holes and tears.

導致他在舞台上穿著的牛仔褲隨著一場場的表演而產生了破洞與撕裂。

But instead of tossing the damaged denim, he kept it, letting the holes get bigger and bigger.

但他選擇保留毀損的牛仔褲，讓破洞越來越大，而不是丟棄它。

Fast forward 40 years,

過了 40 年，

and a pair of jeans that look like they just finished a set with Iggy,

一條看起來就像 Iggy 穿過的那套牛仔褲，

will cost you $2,000 from Dolce and Gabbana.

在杜嘉班納賣將近 2,000 美元。

No stage diving required.

不需要從台上跳下來就有破褲了。

Distressed denim, that is jeans that come pre-aged,

仿舊牛仔布，即預先老化、

faded and torn have permeated modern fashion.

褪色和撕裂的牛仔褲，已滲透進現代時尚。

But why are we willing to pay so much for something that appears so damaged?

但是，為什麼我們願意為那些看起來如此損耗的東西付出那麼多錢呢？

The reason might have as much to do with economics as it does with fashion trends.

其原因可能與經濟和時尚趨勢有關。

For much of their existence,

在牛仔褲存在的大部分時間裡，

jeans were exclusively working wear.

它們只是人們工作中的穿著。

In the second half of the 20th century,

但在 20 世紀下半頁，

they became part of the uniform of protest and rebellion.

牛仔褲變成抗議者或反叛制服的一部份。

Greasers, hippies, and punks,

飛車黨、嬉皮士和龐克，

all have close associations to their denim styles.

都與牛仔風格有密切聯繫。

But it was the antifascist dirtiness of

但，正是反法西斯主義、骯髒的

grunge music that introduced the wider world to ripped jeans.

搖滾音樂，將更廣闊的世界引進刷破牛仔褲中。

The rise of the music video beamed grunge style on to kids living rooms,

音樂視頻的崛起將搖滾風格傳播到兒童的起居室，

and the look took off.

而此風格流行起來。

But today, distressed jeans have become more of

但是今天，刷破牛仔褲變得像是

a statement piece for their price tag than for their protests.

價格標籤的一個聲明，而不是抗議。

Pre-distressed denim is more labor intensive.

仿舊牛仔布的製作更加費工。

Slashing and sandblasting those perfect holes raises the price.

為了弄出這些完美的破洞而進行的穿孔和噴砂會提高牛仔褲的價格。

But higher prices can also be attributed to the rise of athleisure.

但更高的價格也可歸因於運動休閒的興起。

Jeans are being ditched for yoga pants and sweats.

牛仔褲因瑜伽褲和運動服的興起而退流行。

Denim sales have declined over the past several years.

丹寧的銷售額在過去的幾年呈現下滑的跡象。

So, designers have rebranded jeans as being vintage and chic,

因此，設計師重新打造既復古又時尚的牛仔褲，

and are leaning into the nostalgia of 90s styles to charge higher prices.

並傾向於懷舊的 90 年代風格，以收取更高的價格。

Here's where the funky economics come in.

這就是時髦經濟學的應用。

During the height of the Industrial Revolution, economist, Thorston Veblen,

在工業革命的高峰期，經濟學家 Thorstein Veblen

observed that the emerging wealthy business class

觀察到 : 興起的富裕階層

was buying goods simply to show how rich they were,

會為了炫富而購買商品

to set them apart from the working class.

一方面也是為了與工人階層區別開來。

This behavior is exemplified in what economists now call veblen goods.

這種行為在經濟學家現在稱之為韋伯倫商品的例子中得到了體現。

Typically, the demand for a product decreases as the price increases.

通常，隨著價格的上漲，對產品的需求會下降。

But with veblen goods,

但韋伯倫商品，

the opposite is true.

卻是相反。

The demand increases with the price.

需求隨著價格增加。

What separates a veblen good from a regular good is the snob value.

區別韋伯倫商品及一般商品的是為勢利價值。

Items above the snob value are believed to be higher quality or exclusive,

高於勢利價值的商品被認為具有較高的品質或獨特性，

which is what drives their demand upward.

致使其需求往上攀升。

Luxury cars and jewelry are the most common examples of veblen goods.

奢華的車子及珠寶為典型韋伯倫商品的例子。

They're coveted because they are believed to communicate status and importance.

它們是令人嚮往的，因為它們被認為可以傳達一個人的地位和重要性。

Distressed jeans from well-known designers might drive their demand,

刷破牛仔褲出自於著名設計師之手，這點或許提高了它的需求，

but what makes them unique among

但它們何以成為獨一無二的韋伯倫商品，

veblen goods might also be tied to the idea of authenticity.

原因可能是與真實性的連結。

As expensive as they are today,

雖然如今它們價格不菲，

jeans remain associated with the working class and rebellious roots.

牛仔褲仍然與工人階級和叛逆的根源聯繫在一起。

So, your distressed jeans might cost $1,000 but you still seem like a relatable bad ass.

所以，你心愛的牛仔褲可能要價 1000 美元，但你看起來仍然像一個壞蛋。

Veblen also described how the desire for luxury goods trickles down.

Veblen 也描述了對奢侈品的渴望如何逐漸減少。

Meaning less affluent people are also willing to pay more to display their importance.

意味著較不富裕的人也願意付出更多錢來展示他們的重要性。

Distressed jeans find themselves in a strange feedback loop where

刷破牛仔褲正處於一個奇怪的反饋循環中

the higher and lower classes seem to be trying to fit in with each other.

高階層和低階層的人們試圖相互融合。

Ironically, retail designers are offering

諷刺的是，零售設計師正在提供

more affordable distressed jeans options as a result.

更實惠的刷破牛仔褲選擇。

High priced distressed jeans will most likely stick around as

高價格的刷破牛仔褲很可能還會存在

long as they continue to be viewed as nostalgic luxury items.

只要他們持續被視為懷舊的奢侈品。

So, who knows, the next Iggy Pop might have to jump

那麼，誰知道，下一個 Iggy Pop 可能不得不穿著一條瑜伽褲

around stage in a pair of yoga pants to stand out.

跳出舞台才能脫穎而出。

How much would you be willing to pay for a pair of distressed jeans?

你願意為一條刷破牛仔褲花多少錢？

Comment below, and like,

在底下評論，然後按讚，

and subscribe for more Cheddar deep dives and breakdowns.

訂閱更多 Cheddar 深度分析頻道。