10 Things You Need To Know About Hermès Birkin Bags
Birkin bags were the most profitable investment item. While they cost hundreds of thousands, they are resold for millions. So if you want to turn your millions into billions, you better learn all you can about these beautiful baller bags! Here are the top 10 facts behind Birkin bags, and why they are a billion dollar market.
Birkin Bags Got Their Big Break From Sex and The City
The bag made its debut in the ‘80s, but Birkin bags didn’t become the “it bag” until the mid to late ‘90s, that’s when women started, and never stopped obsessing over them. The bag’s status was immortalised in 2002 when Hermès & Birkin bags were featured on an episode of Sex and The City. After the episode was released, the Birkin bag waitlist tripled!
The episode follows Samantha as she tries every trick in the book to try secure a Birkin from Hermès.
It begins with Carrie and Samantha drooling over a Birkin:
Carrie: “The Birkin bag? Really? That’s not even your style”
Samantha: “Oh honey it’s not so much the style, it’s what carrying it means”
Carrie: “It means you’re out four thousand bucks”
Samantha: “Exactly. When I’m tooling around town with that bag, I’ll know I’ve made it.”
When Samantha returns to Hermès after lunch with her new celebrity client, Lucy Liu. She is rejected when she tries to walk in and buy the Birkin, she is left startled by the waitlist.
Samantha pretends that the bag is for Lucy Liu to skip the waitlist, but it doesn’t all go according to her plan and she loses her celeb client and the iconic Birkin.
Back when the episode was aired Birkin bagss did retail for around $4,000 USD, and if Samantha has managed to secure the bag, it would be worth more than double that today!
Birkin Bags Have An Extremely Limited Supply
There are no more than 200,000 Birkin bags in circulation at any point in time. The Birkin bag has the longest waiting list for any accessory today, reported to be around six years!
Birkin Bags Have A Hefty Price Tag
We’re all aware of the hefty price tag that comes with owning Hermès Birkin bags, but how expensive are these beautiful bags? Pricing starts at a minimum of $8,500 (R141,780), while the most expensive Hermès bag, the white Himalayan Birkin is composed of crocodile leather, solid 18K gold hardware and 240 diamonds, and is valued between $300,000 and $400,000.
Birkin Bags Have A Cult-Following of Celebrity
Birkin bags have always been stylish statements of wealth among celebrities and famous fashionistas alike.
Celebrities with Birkin bag collections include: Victoria Beckham, Jennifer Lopez as well as Kris, Kendall, Kylie, Kim, Khloe & Kourtney Kardashian/Jenner (and their diva daughters)
Created & Collected in the Name of Love
The first Hermès handbag collection was created in 1922 by heir Emile-Maurice himself after his wife complained about not finding a handbag that suited her. The creation of the piece was in response to his wife’s fashion frustration. Talk about marriage goals! If that isn’t love, I don’t know what is!
Drake has collected Birkin bags over the last 7 years for his future wifey. His Birkin bags are displayed in a two-story wardrobe. He also owns one of the Hermès Himalayan Birkin bags, which is widely believed to be the rarest handbag in the world.
So, if you’re looking for a free Birkin, it may be worth making Drake’s hotline bling, he’s a Birkin bachelor with bags for days – but only for baes.
Crafting Birkin Bags Takes A Lot Of Time
The reason you might still be waiting for that Birkin bag to arrive at your door could be because each bag takes about 48 hours to make!
The Birkin Bag Was Designed On An Airplane
The Birkin bag was named after Jane Birkin and the idea was conceptualised by Jean-Louis Dumas, with Jane Birkin on a flight to London. The origin story of the Birkin bag says that the bag was inspired by and created for Jane Birkin, by the CEO of Hermès in 1981 after he sat next to Jane Birkin on an airplane. He witnessed all of her belongings fall out of her handbag. So he offered to create a new handbag for her that could hold all her goodies safely without a hassle, together they sketched her ideal design on the back on an airplane sick bag.
The Orange Box Is An Accidental Icon
For the Hermès handbag fanatics, there is nothing better than the sight of the iconic bright orange box. Believe it or not bag-lovers, it was only after World War II when Hermès experienced a shortage of the materials used to make the original cream-colored boxes that they decided to switch to using the orange box. So essentially, the legendary orange boxes that won a packaging Oscar in 1994, were technically an accident! It is our designer dream to collect all 188 sizes.
Birkin Bags Are Named By Size, Colour and Material
Birkin bags are named using a format which describes the details of the bag. For example the Hermès Togo Birkin 35 Blue Cobalt (which Luxity sourced and sold in 2019) refers to a Blue Cobalt coloured Birkin with a length of 35cm, which is crafted in the brand’s signature grainy “Togo” leather. Other leather materials used in Birkin bag names include Epsom, Clemence and Chèvre.
Birkin Bags Are The World’s Best (And Most Beautiful) Investments
Designer handbags were the number one collectible investment in 2019, they even beat art and rare whisky. Wealth researcher Knight Frank revealed that the handbag market has experienced unparalleled profits in auctions and online sales, it is being driven by a variety of designer brands, but the Hermès Birkin dominates the high-end of the market. While art had an overall return of 5% in 2019, handbags held a whopping 13% gain, making it the number one collectible investment for the year.
Buying A Hermès Birkin in SA
So how do you gain access to the Billionaire Birkin club in South Africa? The only store to buy and sell authentic Hermès Birkin bags in South Africa is Luxity! We’ve already sold three Birkin bags, and we are always on the lookout for the next one. If you have one you want to sell your Birkin, simply submit it through our sell to us page!
If you’re looking to be a proud Birkin-owner, Why not create an interest for Hermès Birkin on Luxity and you will be notified as soon as the next one lists. In the meantime, start investing in our other coveted Hermès beauties, Hermès is always worth the hefty price tag.
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