It was once the sole option for fans gathered in moshpits during events; the band’s T-shirt has reaffirmed its fashion status this week thanks to the endorsement of a prestigious brand – and the price tag that goes with it.
Saint Laurent is now selling secondhand band T-shirts for hundreds of pounds as part of In their Vintage line. Nirvana is the leading player with their classic smiley face T-shirt that retails at PS700 and an In Utero T-shirt priced at 2,510 pounds. One T-shirt that features the cover of the 1992 compilation Incesticide The T-shirt has been in the news media. The T-shirt was purchased for an eye-watering amount of P3,295.
These items – as well as their price, were advertised via social media. Sonic Youth’s Kim Gordon – a friend of Nirvana, posted an article on the t-shirts on Instagram along with an ironic (presumably humorous) headline, “Sick! It’s so punk!” Nirvana fans have complained via Twitter, and one person commented that the post is “the contrary to what frontman Kurt Cobain would have liked. He felt that $20 was way too high for a concert ticket”.
Specific musicians may find these costs challenging to take in; however, most T-shirts have been sold, indicating that consumers are willing to pay for something previously sold at a bargain price on a stall selling merchandise. “In the last 10 years, it’s grown massively,” says Deeps Samra, the founder of Catalogue London, a website that sells old T-shirts and other merchandise. “The prices just keep going up.” Matt Sloane, the co-founder of old-fashioned T-shirt stores Jerks and memorabilia retailer Jerks, provides a general principle of the thumb. “If an original LP is worth PS300, then you can be pretty certain that the corresponding T-shirt is going to be worth the same or more,” Sloane says.
Samra claims that the highest amount he made from a T-shirt was a price of PS1,000 for a Bjork T-shirt. Sloane states that the company sold the Aphex Twin T-shirt, the identical design worn by the singer Frank Ocean – for PS2,500. Both agree that Saint Laurent’s price is overpriced; however, Sloane states: “You’re paying for the experience of purchasing items from Saint Laurent, and it’s not a one-on-one deal. This is what you can expect.”
Nirvana T-shirts are sought-after. Saint Laurent’s selections are only some of the most expensive items ever sold. The price of a collector from Japan bought a T-shirt for $8500 (PS6,608), a T-shirt that featured all members of the band, and the Sonic Youth T-shirt worn by Cobain in 1994 was bought for $25,000 in 2014. Jacob McMurray, who curated an exhibit of Nirvana artifacts in Seattle’s Museum of Pop Culture in 2018says that this market is just right. “[Grunge was released] thirty years ago, and nostalgia surrounds it. The children who used to listen to that music are now with power and who have enough funds to pay for this music.”
Sloane believes Saint Laurent’s focus in Nirvana is logical. “It’s similar to low-hanging fruits. The band is large enough to draw the attention they seek (as opposed to) an artist who is a step further from the spotlight.”
Tee shirts have been collected for a long time, but only recently have price soared to shocking levels. Photographer David Titlow released a book in 2016 called Teetotal which showcases his collection. “Back in the 90s, it was possible to purchase amazing vintage T-shirts all over at thrift stores at New York. It’s now impossible, because people are just so savvy to this.”
Sara Blanco, a collector who lives in Los Angeles, began collecting T-shirts when she was a teenager. She’s noted that prices increase. “I used to have a Sade Summer Deluxe Tour 1993 that was my favourite I gave to an ex boyfriend,” she recalls. “It’s being sold for close to $2,000. I’m deeply sorry for this.”
Vintage dealers believe that they will benefit from the Saint Laurent effect will help their business as “the fact that a huge brand is standing with us [in] vintage is putting more eyes on our small community,” says Samra Blanco. Blanco gracefully dismisses those who purchase the four-figure Nirvana T-shirt. “Let’s be honest,” she states. “If someone claimed they bought their vintage T-shirt from a fashion house that was sourcing it, you’d say “that’s way more dorky than being an avid collector’.
