I have never been brand loyal. I’ve never cared what logo or brand name appears on anything I buy, only that it fills a need at the lowest price possible. This is true for big purchases as well as small ones. I have owned Ford, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Mercury, Toyota, Volkswagen and possibly other brands (that I don’t remember off the top of my head) and they all filled the same basic need of getting me from point A to point B.

The same is true for clothing. I don’t need a brand name on the back pocket of my jeans or some logo on the yolk of my shirt. My t-shirt collection does have some “branded” items, but the t-shirts were bought as souvenirs and not from any desire to show support of a brand. In truth, many of these shirts advertise an event I attended, thus my decision to purchase.

I am totally on board with generic/store brand groceries when possible. What so many people either don’t know or don’t think about is where, on a product label, appear the words “Packed for ______________________” and the name of the store from where you are purchasing. All that really means is that the same item the factory was just packing for a name brand – for example, Hunts or Delmonte – continues to package, only the labels have been switched out. Think about this… a factory is packaging, say, green beans, in cans. Once they’ve fulfilled a brand company’s order amount, they don’t stop production to clean out all of the equipment and hook up a different source for the green beans being processed (a green bean is a green bean is a green bean) to use in canning. A simple change of the labels at the end of the line after the cans have been filled and sealed and voila, a new brand, including that if a store name, goes on the same cans that were just minutes ago being packaged for a different brand name.

The same is true for me of any kind of item. I don’t collect purses, least of all ones with designer names on them. I just had to look up the spelling, in fact, for Louis Vuitton as an example. I don’t collect shoes either – same point. If I do shop for clothing, it’s Walmart for the bottom half and thrift stores for the top half. I can only remember the last time I walked into a clothing store and purchased off the rack while I lived in Lancaster County, and it was a special shop to find a birthday present to gift to myself. I’ve been in Montgomery County for almost 9 years, so I know it’s been a long, long while since I’ve been clothing shopping. And since I’m retired, there isn’t a need for ‘fancy’ clothing beyond the four different dresses and one skirt tucked into the back of my closet. Oh, and a pair of black palazzo pants that I last wore 18 months ago to a memorial service for a friend. (I have a friend who has a long walk-in closet, and yet, has to change out clothing by seasons. I can’t imagine having that much clothing.)

So, now that I’ve affirmed my lack of brand loyalty, I now get to tell the world that I own my very first ever fashion statement made by a designer. When I went for my annual eye exam in December, my vision didn’t change enough to need new driving and reading glasses. I only use the driving glasses for when I’m going further than 10 to 15 miles around me. But when I do wear them, I’m often putting a pair of sunglasses over them, and since I had an allowance through my Medicare plan, I decided that I wanted to get driving prescription sunglasses, since it’s inconvenient to add a pair of sunglasses over my driving glasses. So, I went to the wall of sunglasses and found a funky abstract frame that is so not me but I liked it. I went through the process of them, including exchanging the actual lens for one of a darker shade. Once all was done, my cost was nothing out-of-pocket. And at the very end, the attendant told me that my Michael Kors sunglasses would be ready in about 2 weeks.

Michael Kors! That’s the name of a designer that I’m familiar with. And it’s a brand I’ve heard of! I had my first item of what I would consider a luxury brand! I didn’t know who designed the frames when I chose them. I just really liked that they were nothing anyone would expect me to choose because of their loud mix of colors. And I’m trying not to gloat, but I can’t stop telling anyone who will listen that I own designer sunglasses.

No, I will not become obsessed with having to start collecting Michael Kors – or any other designer, for that matter – but every time I reach for them, the name of the designer, which is printed on their case, makes me smile.

How weird is it that a single pair of sunglasses can make me feel special????