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The value of a Birkin bag skyrockets from the moment it leaves the Herm\u00e8s store.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s partly because not just any regular person can buy the bag. Only customers with a sizable purchase history at the brand are offered the opportunity to buy a \u201cquota bag,\u201d such as a Birkin or a Kelly.<\/p>\n
But even Herm\u00e8s\u2019 most loyal shoppers don\u2019t get to choose the exact Birkin model they want. The brand allows boutiques to purchase a select number of Birkins per season, and the style of the bags is rarely known ahead of time, according to Sotheby\u2019s. The notoriously opaque process, nicknamed the \u201cHerm\u00e8s Game,\u201d has only generated more desire for the bag\u2014and even became the subject of a class-action lawsuit<\/a> this month.<\/p>\n Looking to sidestep the Herm\u00e8s Game and score the bag their heart desires, handbag enthusiasts shell out tens of thousands of dollars on the resale market. Thanks to its exclusivity and its status as an investment piece, a Birkin bag\u2019s value is much higher than its sticker price of around $12,000.<\/p>\n \u201cThe resale value of particularly the Birkin and Kelly bags over the past 10 years has outpaced gold,\u201d James Firestein, founder of luxury resale and authentication platform OpenLuxury<\/a>, told Fortune<\/em>.<\/p>\n Prior to starting his own company in 2022, Firestein spent a decade as a luxury authenticator, including two years as the director of authentication at Rebag<\/a>. Over the course of his career, Firestein has seen a \u201cperfect storm\u201d of factors \u201cbolster this wild ride upward.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know several instances where people have doubled their money based on buying it 10 years ago, and reselling it today in pristine condition,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n For some buyers, a Birkin bag isn\u2019t a high-end piece of arm candy, but a worthy investment. Of the Birkin owners he has worked with, Firestein estimates 75% actually use the bags, while the remaining 25% keep them in storage as investments.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s similar to buying a Piccaso and holding it in your home, because you can look at it, you can enjoy it,\u201d Firestein said. \u201cBut then you ship it off in a couple of years and trade it for something else.\u201d<\/p>\n The value of an Herm\u00e8s bag can increase dramatically over time, Firestein said, depending on its color, material, and condition. Second-hand demand is so high partly because the resale market offers shoppers more options than the Herm\u00e8s store, where customers are allowed one quota bag per year, and rarely get to choose the exact model they want.\u00a0<\/p>\n Firestein said the steepest price increase he has seen was a Black Togo 30 Birkin that doubled in value in 5 years. But price increases can be driven by trend cycles and changing demand\u2014so it can be a \u201cgamble,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI wouldn\u2019t say jump in with both feet at this point,\u201d he said. \u201cBut if you got it in 2012, and you sold in 2019, that\u2019s different.\u201d<\/p>\n Before its handbags were spotted on the arms of Jane Birkin and Cardi B, Paris-based Herm\u00e8s began in 1837 as a maker of horse harnesses. Over the course of six generations, it became a ready-to-wear and leather-goods powerhouse renowned for its craftsmanship.<\/p>\n As for the iconic Birkin bag, here\u2019s how the legend goes: In 1984, the late actress Jane Birkin was seated next to Jean-Louis Dumas, executive chairman of Herm\u00e8s at the time, on a flight from Paris to London. Birkin said she couldn\u2019t find a bag that suited her needs as a young mother\u2014so she sketched her dream design on a sick bag, according to CNN. Dumas infused the bag with equestrian elements, giving it the signature Herm\u00e8s look.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was more of a subtle old money brand,\u201d Firestein said of Herm\u00e8s\u2019 status prior to the Birkin craze.<\/p>\n The Birkin slowly reached \u201cit bag\u201d status thanks to being spotted on the arm of many celebrities in the \u201890s and 2000s\u2014and on Sex and the City<\/em>. But it wasn\u2019t until the 2010s, when the online resale market reached the masses, that the hype went stratospheric.<\/p>\n Firestein credits e-commerce with enabling shoppers to buy a second-hand Herm\u00e8s bag from any part of the world. Meanwhile, online forums allowed people to share the secrets of the Herm\u00e8s Game once exclusive to the 1%. The Birkin became a collector\u2019s item over time\u2014and underground demand continues to fuel the resale market.<\/p>\n Some people may desire Birkin bags because they\u2019re so hard to get\u2014but fans also celebrate the brand\u2019s artisan manufacturing and 200-year legacy of craftsmanship.<\/p>\n Unlike brands owned by LVMH and Kering<\/a>, which often share factories, Herm\u00e8s only uses its own factories, says Firestein. Conglomerate-owned brands like Balenciaga, Gucci, and Saint Laurent also tend to use more mass-market materials that are cheaper and easier to get, Firestein explains.<\/p>\n \u201cTheir leather factories are only Herm\u00e8s affiliates, and they only create Herm\u00e8s leathers,\u201d he said. \u201cSo you\u2019re buying into part of that heritage, but then you\u2019re also buying into a higher quality material that they\u2019ve been using for many, many years.\u201d<\/p>\n Compared to other brands, Herm\u00e8s\u2019 quality is \u201ctop-tier,\u201d Firestein said. And though he works with 43 different luxury brands, he admits to having an affinity for Herm\u00e8s bags.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re made to last for generations,\u201d Firestein said. \u201cAnd they\u2019re just beautiful luxury objects at the end of the day\u2014almost like sculptures.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\u201cLike buying a Picasso\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n
The Birkin legend<\/strong><\/h2>\n
What\u2019s in the bag?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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