Last month Chanel announced yet another price increase marking a total of four price hikes in the past 12 months. Since November 2019, the price of Chanel’s Medium Flap Bag in the U.S. has increased by 60 percent and goes for nearly the price of the Cadillac of designer bags, the Hermès Birkin, at a whopping USD $8,800 today. Of course, price increases are nothing new, but the exponential rate in which fashion houses are increasing the retail price of their goods is nothing short of unparalleled and a trend bags & leather goods enthusiasts have had to grow accustomed to.
若问品牌方：随着生产成本飙升，品牌方通过提价应对。疫情引发的全球供应链问题导致原材料、制造和运输成本膨胀，是此次涨价的主要原因。2020年销售额下滑也是因素之一。Chanel 国际销售额大幅下降，尤其来自中国客户的Chanel 。Chanel 发言人Chanel 涨价归因于生产成本、汇率波动，以及确保其手袋在全球各地售价基本一致。
If you ask the market experts: there is another part of the story as well. Bags & Leather Goods analysts have attributed the rise in Chanel prices to an overall corporate strategy that aims to increase demand and establish exclusivity. In addition to price increases the brand has instituted purchase limits which is , “like telling consumers, if you can purchase a handbag, you belong to the club,” Gachoucha Kretz, associate marketing professor at business school HEC Paris, said. “Its iconic bags are best sellers.”
As shoppers look for more affordable options they often seek out the secondary market for alternatives to firsthand retail options. According to Neri Karra, an Associate Professor of strategy and entrepreneurship at IESEG School of Management in Paris “Bags & Leather Goods brands have also recognised this market [is one] to capitalise on: consumers who still want their products, but cannot afford the price tags of the brand-new ones,” Karra explains. “This is the reason we see things like the Kering Group investing into the second-hand Vestiaire Collective.”
If you are in the market for a bags & leather goods item on the secondary market we suggest checking out the Entrupy Verified Business directory. There are resellers listed from all over the world, you might just find that bag you are coveting, for a fraction of the original retail price.
