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MSCHF: Introducing An All in One
For many years, the “made in” label has served as a shorthand for specific preconceptions. Quality in skill, materials, and taste, whether “Made in Italy” or “Made in France.” If anything says “Made in China” or “Made in Bangladesh,” you can expect mass labor, mass markets, and widespread counterfeiting. It is becoming increasingly difficult to determine if these labels are based on truth or are the result of a shared consumer illusion.
How should we interpret a handbag labeled “Made in Peru, Portugal, India, and China”? Not only that, but one that combines a Hermès Birkin, a Celine luggage bag, a Dior saddle bag, and a Balenciaga hourglass?
Introducing The Global Supply Chain Telephone Handbag!
The Global Supply Chain Telephone Bag is the latest piece of fashion performance art created by the creative team known as MSCHF.
The GSCTB, unveiled just in time for Fashion Month, is a Frankenstein item created through a design telephone game in four different nations. Its purpose, like most of MSCHF’s work, is to reveal consumer illusions about ideas such as “value,” “authenticity,” and “style.” By elevating supply chain linkages to the status of designer, the group skewers the entire concept of the It bag and knockoff culture.
To that purpose, the exercise is both sophomoric and profound, as is most of MSCHF’s work, an approach that has earned the group a cult following among collectors such as Tony Fadell, creator of the iPod and iPhone, and rapper Tierra Whack.
A Happy Accident! – The Story
The MSCHF creators began thinking about the GSCTB around a year ago, after designing a reverse shoe (which is currently for sale on StockX for $430). A factory reviewed their specifications and concluded the designers had made a mistake, so they tried to “fix” the shoe.
“That was just wildly proactive,” stated Gabriel Whaley, CEO and Founder of MSCHF. Even if the factory was incorrect, Mr. Whaley and Co. began to wonder what other factories were doing with products that consumers never saw. They decided to see what would happen if they handed over a complete design to a factory. Or four factories in four notorious industrial nations.
They started by giving ambiguous instructions to producers on how to change the shape of a bag. “We would ask, ‘Can you feminize this bag?’ Or, “Can you make it more decorative?” asked Kevin Wiesner, an MSCHF creative director. “That seemed confusing. “One prototype returned with an extension cord as a handle and some power outlets.” However, they discovered that if they showed each supplier a fuzzy image of a popular bag and asked them to use it as inspiration to change a design, they would understand the idea. Or an idea.
The end outcome is an It-bag chimera. One with the hourglass contours, luggage handles, saddle asymmetry, and Birkin flap.
It is made of leather and has a twill inside and a detachable shoulder strap. It will be offered in limited quantities on the MSCHF website in black, baby pink, Yves Klein blue, and tangerine. The price is $650.
Is This Legal?
Mr. Whaley stated that MSCHF is not concerned about Hermès or Dior taking issue with the GSCTB. “As an object, it’s a comment on a process,” said John Belcaster, MSCHF’s in-house counsel (they are frequently sued). “And if construed also as a comment on other objects, Goldsmith v. Warhol provides space, as our bag is a complementary work, not a substitute,” he continued, alluding to a recent Supreme Court copyright decision.
MSCHF’s partner manufacturers are less sanguine, which is why they are only identified by nation, an omission that partially undermines the objective of upgrading supply chain linkages.
The GSCTB is MSCHF’s third handbag design, following the 2022 Made in Italy, Texas bag and the 2023 Microscopic Handbag, a miniature version of a Louis Vuitton OnTheGo style. Along with sneakers, which catapulted MSCHF to fame when it made Jesus Shoes (Nike Air Max sneakers with holy water in the sole) and Satan Shoes (identical, but with a drop of blood inside), accessories have become a growing area of their activity. The irony is that the more MSCHF satirizes consumer culture, the more popular its work becomes. Last season’s Big Red Boots went viral during Fashion Week.
When Can You Get It?
In any event, and maybe unsurprisingly, the bags and shoes have piqued MSCHF’s interest in fashion, and the group is now experimenting with ready-to-wear. Fashion pays attention. Mr. Whaley will be in Milan about the same time the GSCTB goes on sale, on February 21. He has a meeting with some prominent brand executives to discuss a prospective collaboration.
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