Figure the tags

Kids are always fascinated with new things and parents often see them lose interest in it after a few days. But Avani Tripathi's affection of collecting clothing tags has been consistent for three years. The nine-year-old now just wants to continue growing her collection.

"It all started when we went shopping for socks and found that it had the tag shaped like Doraemon. My husband and I found it very interesting and gave it to Avani," explains Prachi, Avani's mother.

"I really liked how colourful and attractive it was; it depicted that it is for kids. Since then, I'm always on the lookout for more cute cloth tags to add to my collection," says Avani.

The enthusiastic collector has over 60 unique clothing tags as part of her collection. She has a blue box where she stores all of them. "I need to upgrade to a bigger box," exclaims Avani.

"We didn't think this interest of hers will last this long. We didn't even take it too seriously; we assumed that she forgot about it. One day, we noticed that she had collected about 12 of them and was taking very good care of them. Since then my husband and I soon started collecting whatever unique tags we could find. It was mostly within whatever we purchased for ourselves though," explains Prachi.

One of the ways Avani finds these unique tags is purchasing from the kid's section. Some brands have interesting facts and jokes printed on their tags, while some other brands have cartoon characters. Some may also have Indian embroidery designs on them and some are created on a certain theme which the brand is promoting at that time.  

"I got a 3D tag when I purchased a dress. I love it so much because when you open it, I can see the entire outfit. Many others from the same brand also do that which is quite awesome," says Avani.

Her collection also includes tags from whatever her parents have purchased. She adds, "My mom had purchased something for herself, an outfit, and the tag was made out of three types of silk. It's very pretty and elegant."

Prachi says that the high-end brands usually make their tags one of their USPs. She explains, "Product labels are as important as the product itself, which is why many brands manufacture custom tags and labels that help them to establish their brand's identity and make their products stand out from the rest.  And now with online stores, many retailers are also using this to their advantage and giving Avani the chance increase her collection."

Having said that, Prachi is happy that Avani understands her limits and doesn't want to purchase things only because of the tag.

She explains, "We're thankful that she understands the limitations. She knows why we are telling her 'no' and we can't buy a particular product. But we have many friends in the airline industry and my husband travels abroad quite often. We keep an eye out for interesting things for her."

Avani wants to become a tennis player when she grows up. So will she want to continue her hobby then?

"Of course. Becoming a tennis player will allow me to travel and that means I can purchase various things from around the world, especially the ones that have unique tags on them," says Avani.