Would you allow 9yr old to buy Gucci?

[mamatocaptainchaos]

My son loves fashion. He always like to look good bless him.

Anyway; he wants to buy a Gucci fedora hat which is £150. He has saved up £200 from pocket money.

What are you opinions on this?! Partner says it's up to him! I think it's madness 😂

I’d probably attempt to steer my lo away from a hat, solely because they’re so easy to put down somewhere and lose them.

I’d perhaps try to suggest alternatives, a belt, bumbag/mini backpack, face masks (Tommy Hilfiger has some nice ones).

Soz me again ... just to say agree it's good idea to wait until he can physically go to a boutique and do it properly. He may try it and and decide the styles not for him.

Also he could charm the sales assistant into chucking a shit load of fragrance samples into the bag for you.

@tellmewhentheLangshiplandscoz

I agree with Reindeers advice.

I think saving for something and delayed gratification is a quality rarely seen in kids these days so I'd encourage this. As another previous poster said some kids would fritter the money away on sweets and other crap and have nothing to show for it.

Don't forget peeps, we're in lockdown so if a child has had a birthday (maybe two) in that time, Christmas and pocket money you could easily save it if you had decided to save for something special.

And you know what? Let's say he goes for it and then a few weeks later is gutted that he wasted the cash ... it's a shame but a lesson that will stay with him.

Exactly zero people have had 2 lockdown birthdays.
Lockdown didn't begin until the middle of March 2020 :p

Ok, maybe the Queen has....

@PinkyU

I’d probably attempt to steer my lo away from a hat, solely because they’re so easy to put down somewhere and lose them.

I’d perhaps try to suggest alternatives, a belt, bumbag/mini backpack, face masks (Tommy Hilfiger has some nice ones).

Well, a backpack is just as easily Kostas any, surely?

As easily lost*

Yes, if it's his money and that's what he wants. Either he wears it and loves it, or doesn't and learns a lesson. No loss to my mind either way. It's his money.

OP if this is as bad as your "parenting fails" go your kids going to be fine

I would let him too, I don’t think that being controlling as a parent is healthy and you have the right attitude op. All the ‘good grief’ comments etc are just snobbery wrapped up in the pretence of being a better parent than you.

What some prople spend on Lego blows my mind and I have to check myself to stop being judgy about gaming and PlayStation etc.

He saved up for it and he might really regret the hat but it’s his money and it will be a good life lesson either way. I hope he gets lots of enjoyment from his hat OP.

Pinky I too have lost many a lovely hat over the years. The saddest moment was a gorgeous tweed Hacket baseball cap which I took off on a Star Wars ride in Disneyland Paris and forgot to pick it up > sobs < I bloody loved that hat.

Original poster this is normally a straight no for many of the same reasons as given by numerous posters in reply.

If a child has worked hard to save up for something that is of interest and value then it is still a part of learning about the concept of money, savings and rewards. Each person will pace a different value on certain items. I know that most luxury brands are essentially marketing, profiting from those that need it to portray a certain image in this instant gratification insta media world. The production costs and quality never varies or truly reflects the asking price.

However original poster if you are extremely high net worth then perhaps it is fine as there is the safe knowledge that the child will grow up guaranteed to have enough financial resources to be accustomed to such superficial material luxuries even without requirement of an income stream perhaps. I speak as someone who has faced these dilemmas in school - be it a school with a particular demographic were magic money trees sometimes are norm as many have more money than sense. A certain parka either Canada Goose or Moncler trending as North Face no longer cuts it.

I am assuming the child is accustomed to these brands from immediate family and friends already so essentially wishing to blend in incognito. Don't lose it though - unless you are made of money! Otherwise it's Gucci factory discount outlets. I trust the child enjoys the investment in the hat and go on to work hard to be a frequent client.

0001 ahh you know what I meant, maybe a birthday a few weeks before then.

I would let him.

My children have come by a reasonable amount of money over the years, they have generous grandparents (three sets) and I let them do what they want with their money, it's their money. The odd mistake has been made, like one year my then 12 year old shopped online for the first time with a card, and each thing was about £20-30 but of course when you added it all up it came to nearly £200. She cried and cried as she didn't intend to spend so much, but we talked about it, about how lovely the presents were, but how it's best to decide a total and work backwards.

I think if he's that determined, it's fine for him to choose his own path. Agree with everyone who says wait til the shops open though.

I wouldn't allow this unless we were millionaires and money was no object.

Teach him that he can look just as good wearing cheaper clothes.

Sounds terrible and an utter utter waste of money. Parents should let kids learn from their mistakes but they should also guide them and prevent them being foolish. You should say no.

Some of these replies are fucking ridiculous. It's his money that he's saved, as parents you don't get to dictate what they spend their money on, even if you think it's a bad idea, it's their choice and the child will either be happy or learn a life lesson. It's a win win. I mean if he was asking you to buy it that would be different but it's his to do with as he wishes. He's obviously really in to fashion and has found something he wants so let him get it. And I say this as someone who isnt at all into fashion and doesn't own an item of clothing over about twenty quid. But if it was my son in question, I'd let him.

Yes.He understands the value of money and has saved up for an item that is important to him. He loves fashion so it's natural that he wants to explore different brands and start to gain more of an understanding of the difference between high street and designer clothing. I was probably the same at his age and appreciated the fact that my parents allowed me to make independent choices.

Ds is the same age and put ‘anything Gucci’ on his Christmas list. I bought him a fragrance which he was so pleased with. I love fragrance though.
I’d probably find it mad to have a £150 hat because where does it go from there. His money, his choice I think.

@Frogartist

Teach him that he can look just as good wearing cheaper clothes.

Of course but this is what this child wants, he has the money so why shouldn’t he buy what he wants with it. It’s not about looking as good (in fact there are a lot of much nicer hats In my opinion but I’m not the one who wants it) in cheaper clothes. It’s about saving up for something you really want

He’s saved the money, it’s a hat, why not? 🤷🏻‍♀️

We’ve always let our kids spend their own money on whatever they want. They’ve got more sensible with their money as they’ve got older and now the two oldest have quite a lot saved up from their allowance, birthday and Xmas money. I think making their own choices has made them good with money which they’ll hopefully continue to be into adulthood.
If he gets a lot of wear out of the hat then great. If he doesn’t then he’ll learn a valuable lesson. But he can probably sell it for a decent price anyway. I think it’s a bit of a none issue.

@Jonnywishbone

Sounds terrible and an utter utter waste of money. Parents should let kids learn from their mistakes but they should also guide them and prevent them being foolish. You should say no.

Why is it a waste of money?

@Notanotherthing

Some of these replies are fucking ridiculous. It's his money that he's saved, as parents you don't get to dictate what they spend their money on, even if you think it's a bad idea, it's their choice and the child will either be happy or learn a life lesson. It's a win win. I mean if he was asking you to buy it that would be different but it's his to do with as he wishes. He's obviously really in to fashion and has found something he wants so let him get it. And I say this as someone who isnt at all into fashion and doesn't own an item of clothing over about twenty quid. But if it was my son in question, I'd let him.

Agreed, there are going to be a lot of children growing up with resentment/control issues going by some replies on here.

@mamatocaptainchaos

Goodness 😂😂 I must be an awful mother because my asd son wants a Gucci hat at age 9 ..... where have I gone wrong?! Please help.

My mum got me a Juicy Couture bag at 10, I saved up on and off for other stuff growing up. Spending my own money made me really look after things though so it can be a lesson.

But also check BrandAlley first - I normally do!

Maybe do what I do when I want something spendy - buy a cheaper version and use it for a while. If I still want the expensive one then I'll get it. Maybe tell him to get a cheap one and see how much he likes it.

Don't understand the comments saying it's foolish, a waste, etc. Just because you think so doesn't mean it is. The OPs son might buy it and love it and treasure it. You never know it could be the first designer purchase that continues to develop his passion for fashion and one day he could be designer himself. Or he could regret it but that would be a valuable lesson learnt about spending wisely in future, etc.