Adidas and Gucci are selling a $1,290 umbrella… and it’s not even waterproof
Before it was teased online, there had been rumours about a possible collaboration between Gucci and Adidas for a while, but it wasn’t until Gucci’s AW22 ‘Exquisite’ show at Milan Fashion Week that the news was confirmed. Sending models down the runway in pieces featuring both the signature GG monogram and three-stripe logos, the brand officially announced the line.
Though the highly anticipated collection is expected to be released on 7 June 2022, it’s currently being shown on Gucci’s website, giving customers a preview of which items they prefer—and which they can even afford…
Among some of the most talked-about pieces is a $1,290 umbrella (sold for £870 in the UK) which its product details states, “Please note, this item is not waterproof and is meant for sun protection or decorative use.” Yep, you read that right, this ridiculously priced brolly is not even waterproof.
Featuring a g-shaped handle and a print design combining the logos of both brands, the “sun umbrella” has sparked wide debate on social media in China since pictures of it went online last week. Understandably, many users were appalled that the item—which retails for an even higher price of 11,100 yuan ($1,600) in China—was not actually functional despite the high price.
Reporting on the matter, Insider wrote that, on the country’s Twitter-like platform Weibo, “the hashtag ‘11,100 yuan umbrella collab is not waterproof’ drew more than 140 million views this week.”
“As long as I’m poor, they won’t be able to trick me into paying for this,” one Weibo user commented. “That’s a very big but useless fashion statement,” another commenter wrote, the publication reported.
A Gucci customer service representative confirmed to Beijing-based magazine Caijing that the item is “not recommended for use as an everyday umbrella” and justified instead that it’s “good collector’s value and is suitable for use as a daily accessory.”
