First, there was a rock. Now, there are faux muddy jeans.
Nordstrom is stirring up internet ire for selling a pair of distressed jeans caked in fake mud. Described in the product details as “Americana workwear that’s seen some hard-working action with a crackled, caked-on muddy coating that shows you’re not afraid to get down and dirty,” the pants, made by Japanese denim company PRPS, are going for $425. They’re part of its Barracuda collection, which also feature a pair splashed with red paint that looks eerily similar to blood. The pants in question come just a few months after Nordstrom sold an $85 leather-bound rock, which drew similar internet outrage.
Twitter users have not held back, and several are scoffing at Nordstrom for making light of working class Americans. According to Brandwatch, there have been more than 1,500 mentions of the jeans as of 1 p.m. on Tuesday, 83.5 percent of which are negative. One user wrote, “My son has jeans like that. Because he works for a living. People who buy these probably don’t even know what mud feels like.” Others are speaking out in support for Nordstrom, claiming shoppers should be able to purchase the jeans if they want.
@RickCanton @SLadreda @Nordstrom Go get ’em dirty working, America! Muddy jeans are earned, not bought.
— JoeVento (@vento921) April 25, 2017
@Nordstrom SERIOUSLY?? Fake muddy jeans for $425?? What the hell?? NOT fashion. Mocking people who work hard for a living. #pathetic
— Lisa Bergstrom (@packerfan1564) April 25, 2017
@Nordstrom why the #attempted #gentrification of #blue #collar #jobs with those #muddy #jeans? Those who aren’t afraid to get dirty #work.
— Dixie La Pierre (@BestCrispAir) April 25, 2017
Nordstrom is selling jeans with fake mud stains for $425.
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Ad position: web_incontent_pos1I bought underwear at Goodwill with stains on them for a fraction of the price!
— Narin Vann (@NarinVann) April 25, 2017
What’s the beef about buying mud jeans? If someone can afford $400 for a pair of dirty jeans, so what? Go for it! #Nordstrom
— Lori Hendry (@Lrihendry) April 25, 2017
Mike Rowe — host of the Discovery Channel series Dirty Jobs, in which he performs challenging feats of manual labor with employees around the country — also spoke out, writing on his Facebook page that such products exacerbate a “war on work” and discriminate against people who work blue collar jobs. “The Barracuda Straight Leg Jeans aren’t pants. They’re not even fashion. They’re a costume for wealthy people who see work as ironic – not iconic,” Rowe wrote.
Others took to the product review segment of the website, leaving notes like “I love that I can now fake a work ethic! Can I get one with fake oil stains? I want to pretend to be a car guy!” under the moniker HipsterJoe. Another user by the name RuralEconomic wrote, “Gotta love being able to look like I have fed the pigs, helped deliver a calf, and get the tractor unstuck without ever having to leave my BMW.”
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Product reviews on Nordstrom.com.
