This isn’t something I’m usually interested in or will read, but as I was paging through this morning’s edition of The Wall Street Journal, it caught my eye.

“Hermès recently raised the cost of a basic Birkin 25-centimeter handbag in its U.S. stores by 10% to $11,400 before sales tax, according to data from luxury handbag forum PurseBop.” [Emphasis added.]

I won’t make any comments about the elites in this country who believe they should be able to dictate how peasants like me should act and think, but the article did assuage some of the tiny bit of residual guilt I sometimes feel when contemplating the money I’ve spent on riflescopes. Maybe I should take another look at the Accuracy International rifles that Mile High Shooting Accessories keeps promoting in their emails to me.

And I guess when there are companies that can make money selling such products in this country, things can’t be as bad as I tend to believe.

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I recall learning about these Hermes bags years ago and how expensive they are.
What a nice place to be for Hermes with its brand, high pricing supports its exclusivity which stimulates increased demand.

It’s a European carry all!

Some women will pay anything will convince a man to pay anything for goods which have "show-off" value.

If I had my career to do over again I'd make women's bags and shoes. There seems to be no limit to the money available.

You could put a designer label on a flour sack and a bunch of stupid women would buy one . Especially if they see a celebrity carrying one down the red carpet .

Mrs. Lee dabbles in this world. If you think getting a new Rolex SS sport model from an AD is a silly game, the handbag kabuki dance puts Rolex to shame. Mrs. Lee went to Hawaii with another Chinese friend who got a lead on a Hermes bag there. The friend was pretty sure she was going to be offered a Hermes Birkin. The sales associate isn't allowed to come out and say you have to buy $10k worth of other stuff you don't want before you get offered the chance to buy the handbag. But that basically how it worked. The SA pretty much led her around the store and made subtle hints on what she should buy. $10k later she was allowed to spend that amount again on the Hermes bag. Mrs. Lee and her friend considered the trip a smashing success. Just like men know women don't notice their watches, women buy expensive handbags to impress other women.

Designer handbags or Rolexes, there are always people willing and able to pay a huge premium for a status symbol. Even with inflation, the standard of living here is as high as it's ever been.

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And I guess when there are companies that can make money selling such products in this country, things can’t be as bad as I tend to believe.

During the Great Depression there were still “The haves”

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Originally posted by Rick Lee:
Mrs. Lee dabbles in this world. If you think getting a new Rolex SS sport model from an AD is a silly game, the handbag kabuki dance puts Rolex to shame. Mrs. Lee went to Hawaii with another Chinese friend who got a lead on a Hermes bag there. The friend was pretty sure she was going to be offered a Hermes Birkin. The sales associate isn't allowed to come out and say you have to buy $10k worth of other stuff you don't want before you get offered the chance to buy the handbag. But that basically how it worked. The SA pretty much led her around the store and made subtle hints on what she should buy. $10k later she was allowed to spend that amount again on the Hermes bag. Mrs. Lee and her friend considered the trip a smashing success. Just like men know women don't notice their watches, women buy expensive handbags to impress other women.

Yes , " smashing success .." .

My wife and I like to go on cruises. On some of the cruise forums people ask is concierge worth it or they say why would someone wat to pay that much for a cabin on the ship.
I say because there is a certain level of comfort or luxury people are willing to pay for.

If a couple has an income of $100,000 a year what is a cabin on a seven day cruise that cost $4000.00 to them.

The same way if a couple has an income of $1,000,000.00 a year what is a $25,000.00 cabin on a seven day cruise to them.

To someone who may have a $1,000,000 a $15,000 purse to them is not a big deal. There are a lot of people in the world worth that much and more.

As long as people are willing to spend that kind of money, business will sell expensive items.

It is a fundamental truth that ultimately the only reason to have money is to be able to trade it for things we’d rather have.

For the past 2 years I've organized and led a fundraiser for my sons youth football program. About 9 teams spread across grades 2 - 8. We get 1 lb bags of coffee from a local roaster and sell them for $15 in front of the local supermarkets. Last year a woman was walking by and asked, "Would you like to support the youth football program?". She replied, "No, your coffee is too expensive."

I noticed she was sporting a Louis Vuitton handbag. Out of curiosity I looked it up online... ~$3,200 for the handbag.

She's willing to shell out 3 grand for a purse, but can't spare $15 for a pound of coffee...

I mean, to a point.

The Chivas Regal Theory, the higher the price of a product, the higher its perceived quality.

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Originally posted by 1967Goat:

She's willing to shell out 3 grand for a purse, but can't spare $15 for a pound of coffee...

It coulda been a fake bag

I saw a show where they were selling 'designer' t-shirts for $1500 each. Girl bought 3 of them without even flinching. I think that is stupid, but the cashier in that boutique probably makes a heck of a lot more in a year than I do. . .

As I read that article, the old saying about "a fool and their money" kept bouncing back and forth in my consciousness.

In reality, of course, these expensive knick-knacks - bags, watches, ridiculously priced 'fashion' and furniture, etc. - are just the free market's painless way of income redistribution from the ultra-wealthy.

The only real harm is if/when people who don't actually have astronomical assets desire to be seen as having same by being seen possessing the trinkets....and really that's a victimless situation.

Now you could be like Youtuber Manny Khoshbin and have a bespoke Bugatti and Pagani made in collaboration between those manufacturers and Hermes.

Yes, he's done that to who knows what amount of money. For a one-off maybe makes sense....

quote:

Originally posted by 1967Goat:
I noticed she was sporting a Louis Vuitton handbag. Out of curiosity I looked it up online... ~$3,200 for the handbag.

She's willing to shell out 3 grand for a purse, but can't spare $15 for a pound of coffee...

1...likely a fake bag. LV purses and totes are some of the most knocked-off items from the luxury goods market.
2...the fact that what you were selling was towards a fundraiser, went completely over her head

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Originally posted by Hound Dog:
I think that is stupid, but the cashier in that boutique probably makes a heck of a lot more in a year than I do. . .

The luxury goods market is an entirely different world for both retail and consumption. I had a g/f who worked at Armani as a part-timer, she received two sets of uniform per season (2x year), full-timers got three per; each employee uniform set was valued at $3k to include shoes, not sure if that was wholesale or, landed-cost but, definitely not retail. The store had about 12-15 employees per shift I think they had about 100 employees total which included tailors, seamstresses, attendants and so on; quite a bit dedicated to just making sure the employees had the right look. The same goes for high-end, 3-star restaurants, everyone is decked-out. Anyways, she said the customers that actually had money, the regulars, were in fact quite nice, didn't lord-over their position and didn't abuse the staff. The irregular sutlers the ones who flaunted strutted around expecting to get waited-on hand & foot, were the jerks.

I bought my wife a Coach bag for her birthday a couple years ago, at the factory outlet, much cheaper than I would pay at a retail store. Not sure what the issue is with it but my wife likes it although she thought the price I paid was crazy and it was only a little over $100. I can't imagine spending thousands on one, unless you have the money but I can't say anything about those who do buy them as some firearms cost a good amount as well.

Grace Kelly added quite a bit of popularity to Hermès bags. She used one to hide the baby bump. It took off after that. It’s now known as the Kelly bag.

Of course these bags are absurdly expensive. But have you ever read about how they are made? Pretty fascinating. Turning the bag inside out after it is sewn takes hours and can only be done by an artisan trained in how to do it without cracking the leather.

We’re not talking about bags rolling off the assembly line in Guangdong. Worth the price? Hardly. But about as nice a bag as a human can make.