If you’ve explored the luxury fashion scene, you would have noticed the eye-catching MCM logo on different accessories. As you keep seeing it, you may have asked yourself, ‘What brand is MCM?’. If this question continues, you should know you’re not alone.
As a fashion enthusiast, knowing the full meaning of the brand acronym isn’t enough to learn about them. You must explore its history and learn how it has instituted itself as a luxury fashion powerhouse, so much so that you can mention MCM in the same breath as other popular luxury brands.
As a result, this post will discuss everything you need about the MCM brand. This discussion would involve the MCM brand, the age groups that use it, and why it’s become so popular. So, join us as we embark on a short trip down memory lane.
What’s the Origin of the MCM Luxury Brand?
MCM is an acronym for Modern Creation Munich. Its journey towards becoming a global luxury fashion brand started in 1976 with the founder, Michael Cromer. He was inspired by the spirit of Munich and the enduring heritage of traditional craftsmanship to create a company that produced high-quality leather products.
The artistry, excellent craftsmanship, and quality of materials consistently seen on these products ignited the brand’s popularity nationwide. In the first four years of its creation, the MCM brand became so popular that it became Diana Ross’ and Cindy Crawford’s favorite brand.
The 1980s saw the brand’s sporadic growth that led to the opening of 250 stores across different world cities, including Los Angeles, New York, Paris, Milan, Brussels, London, and Madrid. For a brand that has been around for a short time, the success it recorded across mainstream culture was groundbreaking.
At this time, the brand had started making handbags, small leather products, and other accessories. As a result, the brand’s popularity grew even more significant as it broke into the Asian market. It has gained so much recognition in Japan and South Korea and established itself as a global brand.
At the time, MCM recorded over $250 million in sales, and its logo, the Cognac Visetos monogram, became a staple in the fashion industry. The logo features a repetitive pattern of the MCM and a laurel wreath to show its luxurious and stylish leanings, making it more appealing to high-class individuals.
Unfortunately, the brand had financial difficulties in the late 90s and early 2000s. The founder, Michael Cromer, was involved in a series of tax scandals, leading to the decline of the German brand. Its popularity waned, and it became difficult to compete with other luxury brands at the time.
Fortunately, the brand saw redemption in 2005 under the ownership of Sungjoo Group. The company understood the brand’s legacy and excellence it thrived on, built on that, and took it back to its seat as a global brand with a strong presence in the industry. Today, MCM is a coveted fashion label adored by a new generation of followers and fashion enthusiasts. They have over 650 stores worldwide, reflecting the success of the new ownership.
MCM was born in Germany and is now based in South Korea.
That’s right. It’s currently popular with Korean stars, which has also led to its popularity in Japan.
What Age Group Uses MCM and Why Is It Popular Amongst Them?
While MCM is a brand that produces fashion items and accessories for all, there’s a specific age group it has become so popular with recently. If you observe the fashion scene closely, you will realize that Gen-Zs are embracing more products and designs from MCM. That’s because the brand has adopted what the Sungjoo Group described as new school luxury.
Before diving into what that is, let’s briefly explain who the Gen-Zs are. Gen-Zz is the generation of people born between the 1900s and 2010s. A key characteristic of their generation is embracing modernity and its offerings without rules or boundaries. This shows in their meaning and expression of arts, music, and even fashion.
They are simply the new school because everything they stand for is a break away from the norm. As a result, they are worthy of a brand that embraces these attributes in creating fashion items. This is where MCM comes into the picture with its modern designs that combine luxury and functionality.
MCM is a brand that creates products that are appealing to the eye and serve a predetermined function. This function could either project an individual style, convey a message, or show status and exclusivity despite being luxurious. Proof of this is evident in MCM calling two famous faces to front its autumn/winter 2018 advertising campaign.
The two faces are American rapper and producer Rich the Kid and DJ Sita Abellan, who are from the same generation as those who wear the MCM brand. The brand continues to leverage celebrity power by collaborating with Lil Ghost, a Chinese Gen-Z rapper and music producer. This is a strategic rebranding move to register the brand’s image in the memory of local consumers.
MCM’s appointment of these celebrities as brand ambassadors aligns well with its roots in pop culture. In the past, the brand partnered with leading musical figures like Beyonce and Billie Eilish, who were influential in getting the attention of that generation. So, it’s no surprise that the brand adopts the same move to appeal more to Gen-Z, its largest consumer group.
The availability of MCM has raised a contention on whether it’s a luxury brand. To address this contention, we will discuss some of the features of a luxury brand. After that, we will test MCM’s performance against each feature to finally settle some people’s concerns about whether MCM is a luxury brand.
MCM is popular among women in their 20s and 30s.
Due to the influence of K-POP and SNS, it has many fans among the younger generation.
Features of Luxury Brands and How MCM Performs
Certain features are often associated with luxury brands. Below is a highlight of some of them and how MCM performs:
1. Excellent Craftsmanship
A brand is considered luxurious when it undergoes a meticulous production process with a finish that shows excellent craftsmanship. That’s why the quality of excellent craftsmanship that’s hard for machines to recreate is the true embodiment of luxury. So, any product that exhibits this trait is considered to be luxurious.
Using MCM as our subject matter, the brand crafts its bags and other items from high-quality materials, using the high-end skills of its artisans. The exquisite end product combines artistry that starts with the designer and ends with the craftsman’s skills. They combine efforts to create the best of the rare leather, canvas, and woven fabrics they use to produce bags and other items.
Another aspect of the quality of craftsmanship for MCM products is seen in the details on each one. A mere glance at a product will reveal that every detail is carefully created. Nothing is random, as the brand maintains attention to all quality details. The MCM Cognac Visetos – a tan color canvas with numerous monogram MCM logos – exhibits this feature. You can liken this style to the LV-coated canvas for Louis Vuitton bags.
2. Rich Heritage
Luxury brands typically have a long history of maintaining excellence in their production. The excellence they exude is often attributed to iconic founders who created a global brand out of pure passion to create a product that meets specific needs. Evaluating all luxury brands, you’ll find this feature very common.
Regarding MCM, it also has a rich heritage that began with Michael Cromer, who leveraged the creative spirit of his birth city, Munich, to create a brand that’s become a force in the fashion industry. The success the brand recorded during its early years worldwide gives it a rich heritage the current owners have built on.
They have continuously extended the legacy of the founder in light of the dynamic demand of the modern luxury landscape. This makes it a luxury brand despite its current leanings toward modernity, which syncs with the ideals of the Gen-Z generation. Judging by this metric, MCM retains its status as a luxury brand.
3. Exclusivity
The point about categorizing something as luxurious is its accessibility by a limited number of people. A brand or product everybody can afford or has defeated the essence of luxury. This is why exclusivity is a crucial feature most luxury brands observe in their production and sales.
They create a limited number of goods and keep the sales exclusive. This drives up the competition for the product, increasing its value and removing mass accessibility. Some brands even make their target market wait a long before getting the product.
MCM has an element of this in its products. You wouldn’t randomly find MCM products anywhere because they are exclusively produced and sold in a few stores and locations. This gives the brand a rarity that’s evident in other luxury brands.
4. High Prices
As much as quality is a significant marker between a regular brand product and a luxury brand product, price is also crucial. Luxury products tend to have higher prices compared to mass-produced products. This is because of the entire cost and quality of production.
This feature strengthens other features like exclusivity and excellent craftsmanship. When a product is expensive, its accessibility is reduced to only those that can afford it. Similarly, if the production process is headed and executed by skilled craftsmen, it attracts a higher price.
MCM charges a high price for its products. While some of these prices aren’t as outrageous as some other luxury brands, they are still significantly higher than the prices of regular brands put on their products. So, based on this metric, MCM justifies its depiction as a luxury brand.
5. Celebrity Choice
The highest feature of a luxury product is its selection by famous figures across different industries. Whether they are musicians, actors, reality TV stars, politicians, or famous entrepreneurs, once they choose a product and rock it openly, it’s most likely to show their status. Their status gives them the resources and access to exclusive luxury products.
Additionally, celebrities don’t wear random attire or carry regular fashion items. They wear brands that provide stylish designs using high-quality materials. Therefore, if a fashion product is a celebrity’s choice, they are primarily luxurious. And spotting them with the product gives more value to the brand.
MCM has always been a popular choice amongst celebrities from its early days. Top figures like Diana Ross, Cindy Crawford, Rich the Kid, Big Sean, Tyga, Taz Arnold, Kanye West, and Rick Ross have been seen wearing MCM. So this checks its status among top figures in different industries.
6. Unique Designs
Luxury brands have some of the most brilliant designs you’ll ever see. Most regular brands use luxury brands’ designs as a muse to create their own. This shows you how attractive, thoughtful, and excellent they are. The best part is they create these unique designs continuously, servicing the needs of their customers.
This is why, time and time again, you’ll see that luxury brands launch newer designs that either take inspiration from old designs or are entirely new. These designs also retain the key features that distinguish the brand. Despite its uniqueness, you can see traits that help you determine that it’s from a particular brand.
Using MCM as an example, the brand has bag collections that are unique to them. They use their Cognac Visetos – a tan color canvas with numerous monogram MCM logos – to create different bag designs you’ll only find in their collection. So, based on this metric, MCM justifies its categorization as a luxury brand.
MCM’s popularity was influenced by landmine women “Jirai Onna 地雷女” and K-POP.
It has been attracting attention since around 2012 due to this influence, and it continues to be popular even now.
What Are the Future Prospects of the MCM Brand?
Considering the advertising campaign that’s seen the brand collaborating with celebrities recently, it’s clear that the brand is committed to taking over the scene again. You’re sure to see newer designs that appeal to fashion enthusiasts and celebrities alike.
Currently, the brand has over 650 distribution stores worldwide. The commitment is to keep creating products that drive innovative designs worldwide. They have also expressed their commitment to becoming a sustainable fashion brand. With all these commitments, it’s safe to say that MCM is back up and is here to stay.
MCM is a brand that even celebrities pay attention to!
It can be said that this brand is loved not only by Korean stars but also by Japanese stars..
Final Thoughts
If MCM is missing in your luxury leather game, then your game is below par. That’s how dominant the brand is in the industry. We hope this post has given you a deeper understanding of the German brand MCM, especially the age group that uses it more. When you see the brand logo next, you’ll appreciate it for its style, enduring excellence, and rich history.
