Fashion Merchandising

“Fine jewelry is no longer an everyday item, but a handbag is now a visible status symbol. Bloomingdale’s Michael Gould got it right: ‘When it comes to handbags, there’s no limit.’” - Howard Davidowitz, Davidowits & Associates. Of course handbags are one of the most important items to a girl! It seems to be that more moderate consumers have been splurging on handbags. Has the high price point become the new norm?

Once upon a time, a consumer could go to a department store and find a chic handbag for maybe $200. Today, that is all just a fairy tale. I don’t know about you, but that is so very sad to me. What happened that we can’t get a decent handbag for a decent price? Now, you go to those same stores and the opening price point on both designer and brand-name handbags starts at $250 and ends up somewhere around $1,000. The main answer to this is that our own taste rate is increasing. We all love those exotic skins and materials. Of course this isn’t the only reason that prices have increased, but that is a main reason. We all love that expensive look, but don’t want to pay such expensive prices. It even seems that consumers prefer the latest Marc Jacobs handbags to diamonds. Instead of ‘needing’ four handbags, we now ‘need’ six. Handbags which were once regarded as “too expensive” now are being thought of as “investments.” Brands such as Hermes and Louis Vuitton are iconic and play a huge role in women’s everyday life.

Hermes

Louis Vuitton

So, just how high will handbag prices go? It seems that prices won’t escalate much beyond $2,000. I’m sure we are all very happy about that. You can find good handbags in the double digit range all the way up to four digit range. It all just depends on how much bang you want for your buck. Handbags have always been an important accessory, but now more than ever they seem to be a huge status symbol.

Fendi

So, buying a nice handbag may seem like a fairy tale, but it’s one that can actually come true.

Posted by Rebecca at 06:33 PM |