Are you a billionaire trying to set himself apart from all the ordinary millionaires out there these days? Or perhaps you want to show a potential employer that you have the horrible money management skills to run one of today's top financial institution into the ground? Well, it doesn't take an $87,000 area rug like that dude from Merrill Lynch bought. You could be making the same fashion statement for half of the price with a mindnumbingly expensive suit from Brioni.

Just in time for the greatest financial downturn in decades, high-end Italian clothier Brioni is releasing one of the most expensive lines of suits in human history. As you might expect from the price, these suits are absolutely top-notch, made to measure from all sorts of exotic materials such as "vicuna, pashmina and Qiviuk."

"The timing," acknowledges Brioni's CEO Andrea Perrone, "was not fortunate for us." Still, the experts at Brioni decided to go ahead, because it would help reassure customers that the line had not compromised on any of its "high-quality initiatives."

Brioni is also confident because the line targets what they call the "elite of the elite." When you're talking about the extremely, ridiculously, super-rich, changes in income don't really figure into their purchases. Instead, according to the chief economist at Deloitte LLP, the wealthy are "constrained by guilt, and that's the hurdle high-end brands have to overcome."

So far, 30 buyers have overcome that hurdle and placed orders for the five-figure suits.


[via BlackBook]