The story of Hermès Birkin begins in 1984 with Jane Birkin on a flight from Paris to London. The British actress had dropped all her belongings while attempting to fit her famous basket that she was known to carry everywhere into the overheard compartment, she proceeded to complain to her seatmate that she just couldn’t find the right weekend bag.
Little did she know, the actress was seated next to the chief executive of Hermès- Jean Louis Dumas. The pair then went on to sketching handbags during the entire journey. A year later, Jane was presented with a spacious yet sophisticated bag named after her and the rest is history.
When you consider the rankings of all luxury handbags, undeniably Hermès Birkin triumphs, with a waitlist that can last up to 6 years or more and the prices ranging around $6,640 and over, some may even argue that it’s a better investment than stock market or gold, needless to say it is the most prized possession one could own, if they’re lucky enough to get their hands on them.
Birkin is without a doubt the most exclusive and coveted bag in the entire world, with limited bags made for each style. The Birkin bags were designed and created in a way that make it highly functional and additionally, the bag seals well to prevent any spillage of items contained in the bag. Hermès Birkins are crafted entirely by hand by specialists and uses premium materials such as calf skin, ostrich skin and even alligator skin.
Some of the celebrities fortunate enough to get their hands on not one, not two but enough Birkin bags to fill an entire closet such as Victoria Beckham and Jamie Chua. There was a time where the singer, fashion designer and philanthropist, Victoria Beckham, wasn’t photographed without a Birkin bag in her hand. On the other hand, the Singaporian socialite, Jamie Chua known to have the largest collection of handbags has dedicated an entire closet with over 200 Birkin bags.
Birkin has gained a considerable prestige over the years but it wasn’t always the case, when Birkin was first launched they didn’t gain much popularity up until the 90s, thirty years later during the It-bag era. Now Hermès Birkin has established a name for itself to the point that it isn’t possible to purchase the bag off the shelf in a store anymore as they don’t take orders, one can only hope that they made a name for themselves that Hermès would recognize them to give them one. The only other way to get a hold of a Birkin is through auctions or stores that sell a pre-owned Birkins, with estimated number of 200,000 Birkins in circulation. The limited availability has certainly increased the demand and exclusivity of Birkins.
Birkins are considered to be a great investment; around hundreds of Birkins have been auctioned in the past seven years, which goes for thousands and thousands of dollars. The rarer the model, the more expensive is the rate of the auction; the pink and purple Birkins currently top the rank at auctions with the highest rate.
One of the most sought after model is from the “Hermès Himalaya Collection”, often referred to as the holy grail of handbags is available in three sizes. The rarest model from the collection is the 35 cm “White Himalaya Birkin Bag” which features over 200 diamonds and 18 carat white gold hardware. It costs around $500,000 and has been sold at record breaking prices year after year. One of the celebrities to be seen with a model from the collection is the reality television star, Kylie Jenner from the Kardashian-Jenner family.
Hermès has grown in popularity and established itself as the luxury fashion house it is today because of Birkin. Birkins have now become a sensation and the popularity of it only grows day by day.
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