Recently, many students have been spending exorbitant amounts of money on premium designer brand jeans. Jeans have long been a staple of high school fashion, but, as of late, many students seem to be making the choice to spend an extra $200 on pricier brands of jeans. These premium denim brands, which can cost up to $600, include True Religion and Robin’s and Hudsons.

Designer jeans are generally very expensive, which many students think is one of the main reasons that they are so coveted.  Students say that some people are glad to buy these jeans to show off their wealth.

“I buy them because I got money like that,” sophomore Tino Pohauhau said.

“It’s about the  brand. A lot of people wear them because they’re expensive, and people like to wear expensive [stuff]. It’s because people look better in expensive [stuff], you get to show off how much money you’re making,” sophomore Victor Laguna said.

Others propose that these jeans have risen in popularity due to their celebrity endorsements. Rappers Fetty Wap and Kodak Black have both referenced the popular designer brand Robin’s Jeans in some of their most popular songs.

“I think the stigma behind the jeans is perpetuated by all the famous people that wear them. I guess people just follow what celebrities do,” sophomore Landon Pierce said.

Others believe the reason that these jeans are so expensive is because of the look. According to Overstock.com, many people choose to wear designer jeans not only because of superior quality, but because of style. Wearing jeans manufactured by Robin’s or True Religion is the best way to keep up with current fashion trends.

“It just looks better,” junior Mark Mendoza said, “The stitching is thicker and bigger, and it pops and stands out more.”

In a similar vein, expensive designer belts have also been gaining traction in the Sequoia student body. These belts, which include Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and MCM, could cost a person upwards of $400.

“Buying designer belts is the same thing as buying Trues; they’re expensive, they look good,  and it shows off how much money you’re making,” Laguna said.

One may find themselves asking, why these specific brands? Would it be the same if Levi’s released $300 jeans? Many people believe it’s because these brands have perpetuated themselves as the go to expensive brands simply for the recognizability of the name as something expensive.

“It’s because it’s Gucci. It’s all about the brand—the brand is everything,” Pohahau said.

This culture of attempting to show off wealth seems to go so deep that people are willing to purchase fake versions of these expensive belts.

“Most people that wear designer belts have fake ones. I guess people want to look like they’ve got a lot of money,” said senior Francis Adams.

A big part of the culture of these expensive jeans and belts is to show off.

“The aim is to stunt on [people] and flex on [people],” Sophomore Luis Cortes said.

According to Urban Dictionary, “stunting” or “flexing” is to “flaunt expensive merchandise or show off.“

“The reason you can ‘stunt’ on people is because of the cost [of the jeans] … That’s just what True Religion is for. When you wear them, people are all up on you,” Cortes said.