covet this: The Ultimate in Luxe: Hermes & Deluxe
“In 2004, luxury brands collectively sold $11.7B worth of handbags and other leather accessories, and the segment is only getting stronger. While the luxury market grew by 1.2 percent each year from 2001 to 2004, leather goods sales increased by 7.5 percent each year. A large share of those sales are “It” bags: the latest hot designs that-thanks to luxury brand ad campaigns and fashion magazine articles-become the must-have of the season.” Whereas Gucci churned out the Hysteria line, Fendi rolled out with baguettes, and Dior introduced a new take on the saddle bag, “Hermes handbags are the antithesis of an “It” bag: most of the designs have been around for almost a century and are coveted not because they are in fashion but because they never go out of fashion. They don’t bear ostentatious logos; the bags themselves are sufficiently recognizable. Hermes handbags convey old money and refinement-even if those who carry them have neither (ed. Heidi Montag, anyone?).” - From Dana Thomas’s
For the past week, I’ve been immersed in Dana Thomas’s fascinating book chronicling the cult of worship that are luxury goods. From the brands’ (Hermes, Chanel, Prada, Gucci, LVMH, etc) evolution (it always begins with the best intentions, with the desire to make the finest quality goods by family owned and operated businesses) to the revolution that is our conspicuously consumptive culture (why do we feel we need that $3,000 handbag), to the marketing & advertising masterminds who made “luxury” accessible to the masses (from Chanel lipsticks to Prada nylon totes), to the dirty story of globalization (that bag was Made in Italy? Think twice about that label), capitalization, class and culture, Deluxe is a delicious story about the men & women who have transformed luxury into mass-merchandized, mass-produced, mass-consumed, commodity.
For aspirational fashionistas, the handbag is the entree into a luxury brand. Walk into Gucci, Prada, Chanel, Hermes, and the first thing you see are the accessories: scarves, small leather goods, watches, perfumes, sunglasses, and the houses’ traditional & seasonal “It” bags. Clothes tend to not sell as well (due to expense, trends, fittings, and unrealistic cost), and luxury goods companies are fully-aware of this. Only the rich can afford couture or can justify spending upwards of $4000 on a blazer, however, for those who want a small taste of the proverbial “good life,” accessories are the way in. And brands are cashing in through effective advertising (remember when magazines actually had articles) to advetorials to product placement to celebrity endorsement (or human product placement), everywhere you go, you are slammed with the idea of what luxury affords you. First rule of marketing: you’re not selling a product, you’re selling a promise, a satisfying of a consumer’s need.
Sorry for prattling on, but I find this endlessly fascinating. We are the richest country in the world, however, we’re consistently desperate to project RICHER. And I too find myself falling pray to smart marketing. I walked into a consignment shop today and fondled an Hermes Kelly. I walked out, shook my head, and kept repeating to myself: You can’t afford that bag. And more importantly: You don’t need that bag. Pay off your debt. Keep moving. Nothing to see.
But it’s nice to dream a little, isn’t it? On a related note, I’m cleaning out my closet and dumping a lot of items on Ebay. I’ll be adding items over the course of the next few days, so check it out if you’re a gal and have some $$ to spend. Chanel, Ted Baker London, Donna Karan, Barneys NY - I’m getting rid of it all.
August 16th, 2008 at 9:34 pm
ahem. everything is size one or size two.
August 16th, 2008 at 9:37 pm
Alyssa - Not sure how to help you there. I’m putting my personal items on ebay, which are my size- regrettably, they’re not going to be sized for everyone taking a peek.
August 16th, 2008 at 10:13 pm
I am loving this book; it’s been on my list forever and I just started this weekend. I’ve been trying to find a great way to sum up how I feel about luxury and the change in it and I found it in this book in a quote from Chanel: “And luxury lies not in richness and ornateness but in the absence of vulgarity.”
August 17th, 2008 at 6:33 am
Alex-It’s a great read!
August 17th, 2008 at 8:23 am
perhaps it’s the motivation i need to take off the xx pounds i’ve gained since my boyfriend moved in. a year ago.
August 17th, 2008 at 11:21 am
very interesting. I have never understood why people spend so wastefully on something that just doesn’t do the job any better than a 200$ purse. Get a scarf from loehmans, and it might just be prettier.
Unless of course, they are really seeking the status… but that confuses me too. Do they really believe a birkin bag will mean they are… what? classier? than other people? Why are people so suckered in by name brands?
I guess I should read that book.
August 17th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
Rowena,
And I look and wonder what a $200 bag can do that a $100 bag can’t.
My big splurge about 5 years ago was a red leather D&B purse in their traditional shape. I still carry that bag and get compliments on it all of the time. I spent less than $200 on it at a D&B outlet and decided it was worth the cost since it was leather and the style was timeless.
August 17th, 2008 at 10:44 pm
Great entry. That book sounds fascinating! I’ll have to give it a look.